Cerulean Dreams
by Nikolai Mirovich
Summary: The sequel to The Courier. In this tale, Miranda and Misty journy to Misty's home town, confront her sisters, face off with a dark chef, and even manange to put Misty's life back into some semblance of order.


Cerulean Dreams

By

Nikolai Mirovich

Author's Note: This is the second story in my series of Pokemon based fanfics. It continues the plot from "The Courier", but for the record, I'm not completely happy with it. But that happens; all I can do is make the third story even better! Anyway, there's many people I'd like to thank, but mentioning their names could get me killed, so I won't. Oh! And I'm preparing an FAQ for this series which should be at my ASSTR page ("ftp/ftp. some time soon, so hopefully this ride will be less confusing to some of you.

Legal Stuff: If for some reason legal reasons keep you from reading this story (I.e.: Your age is too young in your country to be reading such filth), I'm obligated to tell you to go away. Not that I think that'll stop you. And certainly not that I care who reads my stories, so long as somebody does! So, with out anymore of my ranting, on with the show!

Chapter I

Misty gritted her teeth as she stood at one end of the fairly uninteresting playing field. Rocks and boulders really weren't her idea of fine décor, but it seemed to suit the Pewter Gym's style, and the trainer wasn't planning on staying any longer than she had to.

"If you're ready then," the burly fellow at the other end of the field replied with a shrug, almost absently tossing a pokeball a few feet away and calling out his pokemon, "Time to defend our Gym's honor, Grinder!"

Grinder turned out to be the second biggest onyx Misty had ever seen. And this one also seemed to have been through a whole lot more than the others. The enormous stone serpent had many large scars across his body as testament to the many years that he and his trainer had been traveling the world, avoiding the responsibilities of family life and battling against others who knew them only by reputation.

Misty glanced over at Miranda, who was calmly leaning against the wall, her arms folded across her chest with a confident smile upon her face, her eyes half closed. Upon her shoulder Nezumi sat on his haunches, mimicking his trainer's pose.

"I have faith in you," said Miranda quietly, speaking softly even as her voice echoed off the vaulted ceiling.

Misty smiled, knowing the fight would be one sided. She knew that the old onyx was tough, but his kind was known for their incessant hydrophobia. "Shadow," she commanded, holding a small pokeball up with two fingers in an attempt at copying Miranda's sense of melodrama, "Time to win you first badge!"

She tossed the ball into the air as it expanded before popping open with the characteristic mechanical noise they all made. A half second later, a wash of crimson light spilled forth from the split sphere, forming a large five-pointed pokemon out of seeming nothingness.

The trainer at the far end of the field gave a stern look to hide his disappointment. "A staryu, eh?" he commented, rubbing his stubbly chin, "alright then, let's get this over with! Grinder, tackle attack!"

"Shadow, power-up!" Misty ordered in response, causing her levitating staryu to turn sideways and begin spinning in a counter-clockwise direction as the stone snake bore down upon him.

The onyx roared, a sound akin to a mountain avalanche, as he arced his way into the air before slithering quickly across the field and swooping down upon the smaller pokemon, his jaws agape. Seemingly undaunted by the prospect of becoming a star shaped stain on the rock strewn floor, Shadow's speed increased, spinning faster until his five arms were but a blur, the red orb at his center glowing fiercely with the exertion.

"Now, Shadow!" called Misty, the tension coming across in the slight quaver in her voice, "Neptune's Might!"

The staryu gave a quick affirmative that was lost in the cacophony of sound that followed the powerful water technique he unleashed. The spinning pokemon now appeared to be more of a circle than a star, and with an exclamation akin to a battle cry, Shadow let loose with quintuple blasts of high-pressure water.

The onyx, now doing something of a power dive let out a roar of terrified panic, even before the spinning wall of water bisected him. Unable to pull back from the attack, the silicate-based pokemon followed through, although it seemed that he more fell forward more than actually attempted to tackle, but the effect was similar.

However, as he hit the spinning arms of Shadow, Grinder's head was violently jerked upwards in a movement that would have given a creature with an actual spine whiplash. He let out a sound that could have been construed as a yelp of surprise, but sounded more like two rocks crushing a diamond, as the staryu hit him several dozen times in the jaw.

Misty smiled at the effect. "Just as I planned," she replied, knowing that the water would more than soften the onyx's armor, allowing her pokemon to knock the nearly invulnerable beast into unconsciousness.

Just then, Shadow's multiple jets of water slowed to a dribble, and the starfish pokemon flew off into the air on sheer momentum, leaving the wounded Grinder to fall beneath him.

"Not a bad victory," Flint replied, returning the onyx before he turned in to mud, "But I'm getting a little sick of being beaten on by you water obsessed trainers."

"Try getting more diverse pokemon," replied Miranda, running onto the field with open arms just in time to catch the falling staryu, "Ah! Gotcha! Oh goodness you're heavy!"

The staryu almost seemed offended by the comment, but levitated slightly as Miranda set him down on the ground. "Nice going, Shadow!" his trainer exclaimed happily, holding up two fingers in the traditional symbol for victory, "Couldn't have done it without ya!"

"And congratulations to you, dear," commented Miranda as she stood up, untucking her now wet t-shirt so she could wring it out a bit and smiled.

Misty returned the smile as she walked past the woman. "It was easy," she told Miranda as their fingers entwined, "You were my inspiration..."

Miranda turned as Misty continued on, her shoes making squishing noises in the now muddy floor as the two held out their arms to maintain contact for as long as possible.

"I think that's my line," Miranda chuckled as their fingers slid over one another until contact was reluctantly broken, "But I'll let you get away with it this time."

Misty glanced over her shoulder as she approached the gym leader. The girl caught Miranda's gaze and smiled mischievously. "That'll be one Boulder Badge, sir," she said, walking towards Flint without breaking eye contact with her lover.

The man grunted in reply, holding out his large hand. Misty turned back to him and nodded as she reached out with her much smaller fingers to take the badge. "Thank you," she replied politely, her voice a sounding a little sad as she took the small object.

"Not a problem, lady," said Flint with a shrug, in a tone that implied that he was getting too old for this, "Just make sure you tell my son to get his butt down here next time you see him."

Misty shuddered involuntarily as she turned away, the look on her face causing Miranda's heart to sink. "I'll be sure to do that," Misty answered quietly before running over to Shadow and hugging him happily, covering her mood with a bright smile, "Look what you one us!" she laughed, but Miranda could see the turmoil in her eyes.

"We'll talk later," the courier responded, putting a hand on Misty's shoulder.

The water trainer glanced up, her expression becoming more serious, and nodded before standing up and leading her pokemon off the field. "It's just bad memories, dear," Misty said with a shrug as Miranda stood ready for her crack at a Boulder Badge.

The gym leader met her calm, serious gaze with a slight shiver, and Miranda smiled a little at the thought of such a large man being afraid of her. "Are you ready?" she inquired politely, "Or would you like to establish some extra ground rules?"

Flint nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, actually," he answered with a gruff, but not unfriendly tone, "One on one as with your friend there, but this time, please no water pokemon. Okay?"

Miranda's half smile became a full-fledged grin. "Not a problem," she said glancing at the rattata on her shoulder, "You're up, dearest."

The man nearly burst out laughing as the rattata leaped to the floor where he stood upon his hind legs. "Nez, umi!" he exclaimed in challenge, rolling one small forepaw into a fist and raising into the air.

With a polite cough Flint pulled a second pokeball from his belt. "A rattata, eh?" he said rhetorically, tossing the sphere onto the field, causing a squat, round rock-type to materialize, "It'll be nice to have the advantage for once. Go, Krystal!"

"Don't bet on it," chuckled Misty, kneeling beside her exhausted staryu on the sidelines, "That's no ordinary rattata!"

"Indeed," replied Miranda, reaching into her shirt, and pulling out the small, rounded, and very well polished dark, stone she now wore on the end of a silver chain, "Nezumi, show the nice golem what you can do."

With a confident grin, the rattata took a deep breath before firing an ice beam over the golem's head. Both trainer and pokemon ducked instinctively, their heads moving to follow the path of the beam as it struck the wall near the ceiling. Then, as the beam faded out, a small section of wall began making unpleasant crackling noises as a small sheet of ice formed upon it.

"A- An ice beam!" stammered Flint, looking back at Miranda in astonishment, "Where the heck did he learn that!"

Miranda folded her arms across her chest, shifting slightly as she put most of her weight onto her left leg. "Nezumi's quite an exceptional rattata," she said simply, keeping her smile polite, "You would do well not to underestimate him."

"I see," the gym leader said thoughtfully, shaking his head in disbelief, "Oh well, at least if the rumors are true I won't spend so much time getting my butt kicked..."

"Firstly," replied Miranda, raising her index finger slowly into the air, "Never assume you've lost until after the battle, and secondly," she lifted a second finger, "What rumor?"

"Oh, haven't you heard?" Flint exclaimed in surprise as his golem sat down heavily and Nezumi yawned, looking bored, "They're opening a ninth gym."

"Ninth gym?" inquired both Miranda and Misty in unison.

The aging Gym Leader nodded. "I thought you trainers were always up on such news?" he pondered, "Oh well. Hasn't been officially confirmed yet anyway."

"We've been on the road for a while," replied Miranda with a shrug, "And this badge collecting thing is just a hobby for me. Misty's the one who's serious about it."

"Irregardless," he continued, glancing down at his golem as she staggered awkwardly to her feet, "Shall we begin?"

"So be it," answered Miranda dramatically, as the previously prone Nezumi kippupped to attention and grinned toothily at his opponent, "Nezumi, prepare for battle." 

"Go!" exclaimed Misty from the sidelines, as anxious to see Miranda win, as she was to leave the town of Pewter behind.

Without hesitation, the Pewter Gym's leader pointed dramatically at Nezumi. "Krystal! Avalanche attack!"

The golem didn't hesitate to obey her trainer, withdrawing her stubby limbs and even head like some strange round turtle made of stone, and beginning to spin in place.

"Nezumi, 'there not there'," Miranda replied simply in a calm voice.

Flint blinked loudly as his golem spun off with the sound of scraping stone, hurtling herself at the little rattata. Nezumi narrowed his eyes slightly as the spinning boulder barreled towards him before leaping into the air at high speed. The golem flew past his original position, but stopped herself after only a few feet, before sailing off in the direction Nezumi had leapt.

"Nice variation on the 'quick attack'," the gym leader commented, having trouble following Nezumi as he bounded off several large boulders and short stone pillars.

"Effective use of the 'withdraw' technique as well," Miranda complimented, enjoying the game as Krystal smashed her way through the rocky outcroppings that Nezumi began continually using to propel himself through the air, dodging the giant sentient boulder without much of a problem.

"But your pokemon is running out of room to maneuver," the man replied, watching with satisfaction as Nezumi barely rebounded in time to avoid becoming a part of a pile of dust that was once a boulder.

"Ne! Ratta!" taunted Nezumi, the purple blur streaking towards the final stationary object on the field.

Krystal gave an angry exclamation, turning at such a high speed that she dug out a small trench in the stony ground before rocketing towards the infuriatingly rebounding rattata.

"Now, Nezumi!" exclaimed Miranda, expressing a rare emotional outburst, "Cone of cold!"

"Raaaa!" Nezumi shouted triumphantly as he hurtled towards Krystal, the unstoppable force verse the immovable object, and let loose with the crackling blue hued energy wave known commonly as an ice beam.

Krystal's trainer gritted his teeth, and nearly had an aneurysm as the beam went wide, sailing overtop of the rock pokemon to impact with the far wall.

"Nezumi!" exclaimed both Miranda and Misty in unison as Nezumi went flying end over end through the air.

"Give up?" the gym leader inquired as Krystal rolled after the rattata, the loud stone on stone noises of her passage almost drowned out by Nezumi's unhappy wail.

"I-! I-!" stammered Miranda, her mind too focused on Nezumi's well-being to think straight, but as her mouth began to form the words, Nezumi's blur began to glow.

"Nezumi!" called Miranda, "What are you-!"

But the woman cut herself off, understanding perfectly her pokemon's intentions and motivations as his form expanded in size. The rattata's mass becoming at least ten times its former stature for the second time in his life.

Then, just as the glowing white light dissipated, and Nezumi landed on his feet, the golem gave out a loud surprised shriek. "Nez!" exclaimed the raticate as he leaped forward and grabbed hold of the golem's round body before using Krystal's momentum against her, tossing the huge boulder into the air behind him.

The three humans followed the suddenly airborne pokemon with their eyes as she sailed up into the air and crashed into the wall, taking a considerable chunk out of it. "Nezumi! You evolved again!" commented Miranda, uncertain as to whether to be happy or just amazed.

"Nez, nezumi," the raticate replied, with a nonchalant shrug.

Meanwhile, Krystal had managed to unfurl her limbs and was glowering darkly at the over grown rodent before her. "Goooolem," she growled menacingly, grabbing a fair sized chunk of rock from the ground in front of her, and hefting it into the air.

The raticate looked from his trainer to the golem with his usual confidence, and smiled as he filled his lungs, anticipating the attack. It came in short order, with a loud exclamation from Krystal. Nezumi watched the hurtled rock as it flew unerringly towards him for a moment before unleashing his now much larger ice beam.

The rock didn't seem affected at first as a thin coating of ice covered its dull gray surface, but as it fell towards Nezumi with all the force of a Second Impact, its intended victim sprang into action.

With a sound that could have been a triumphant laugh as much as it could have been a smart assed remark, Nezumi spun on his heel and swung his now much longer tail around. He hit the rock while it was still in the air, eliciting a face-fault from Krystal as the projectile shattered into a thousand pieces.

"Wow!" laughed Misty from the sidelines as Nezumi brushed the gravel from his shoulder like it was nothing, "When'd he learn that trick?"

"You amaze even me, dearest!" agreed Miranda, laughing as Nezumi held up a paw, waving it dismissively.

"He certainly is something," agreed Flint, focusing on his own pokemon, "Krystal! Underground, now!"

The golem nodded once, before retracting her limbs again and spinning in place. As if by magic, the ground rumbled beneath their collective feet, opening up under Krystal before swallowing her up seemingly without a trace. Thus leaving Nezumi alone on the field. For a moment the silence was almost deafening.

"Ratta?" the rodent pokemon exclaimed, looking at the golem's trainer like he was an idiot before leaping forwards and burrowing underground himself, his sharp claws ripping and tearing at the dirt floor in a method far less stylish than the golem, but no less effective.

"That's quite a versatile pokemon you have," commented Flint in the dreadful calm that followed.

"Normal types always have the advantage," assured Miranda, her eyes focused on the hole Nezumi had disappeared into.

"Except of course, against fighting types," the man corrected her, causing the woman to flinch.

"Don't remind me!" Miranda growled, her hands becoming fists as bad memories assaulted her mental defenses.

"My apologies," the man replied a little too offhandedly, paying attention to the sudden rumbling sound beneath their feet, "What the-!"

"An earthquake?" inquired Misty rhetorically as the walls of the old warehouse that held the Gym began to shudder visibly.

"No," responded Flint, looking thoughtful, "Definitely not an earthquake. More like our pokemon just found each other!"

Both trainers glanced down at the floor as the rumbling became louder and more ominous. Just on the edge of their hearing they could hear scratching noises, interspaced by the voices of both pokemon scrambling around in the dark.

"What do you suppose they're doing down there?" inquired Misty, looking worried and hugging Shadow protectively.

Miranda shook her head, seemingly unconcerned. "I have faith in my Nezumi," she said simply, glancing up at Flint as a peculiar white light suddenly burst forth from both holes the raticate had dug.

"Evolution!" the gym leader exclaimed, immediately recognizing the source of the light.

"Interesting," commented Miranda, her calm unbroken by the tension in the air, the strange light, or the fact that the rumbling was getting louder, and that the floor was cracking at its center.

"But golems and raticates don't evolve any further," muttered Flint, shaking his head.

"Perhaps they found another pokemon," Miranda postulated, smiling as the floor began to buckle and small jets of water began spraying out of the cracks, "Or maybe not..."

With that, the center of the floor exploded upwards and outwards, sending chunks of rock and cold water flying in all directions. In the middle of it all, a large rounded shape was scrambling in mid air, its stubby limbs scrambling for purchase.

"Krystal!" exclaimed Flint, running onto the field, becoming soaked and bruised in the process.

"Nezumi?" inquired Miranda, sudden concern gripping her as a small shape became visible on top of a panicking golem.

"Nez, ra!" the once again little pokemon called back reassuringly, laughing as he scampered across the continually rotating surface of Krystal.

For its part, the water seemed unwilling to let up, traveling at high speed most of the way to the ceiling before raining down in all directions like a geyser. At first it seemed that a simple water main had burst, but as the smell caught up with them, all those present realized it was high-pressure sewer pipe.

"Nezumi!" called Miranda, her voice sounding odd as she held her nose.

"Krystal!" called Flint, his gruff voice almost comical as he followed suit.

"Return!" commanded both trainers, each holding out pokeballs and sending out crimson beams of light that dematerialized their pokemon for easy storage...

Chapter II

Misty was jostled awake as the truck hit a bump in the road. Her sleep-blurred vision caught a passing road sign. "Route 3, Mount Moon next left," it read.

"You're awake," said Miranda quietly, giving her lover a sideways glance as she drove and reached over to take her hand.

Misty nodded. "I wasn't totally asleep," she replied, unbuckling her seat belt and sliding over closer to Miranda, "I was just thinking about the other day."

Miranda looked thoughtfully out at the road ahead, sliding an arm around Misty as the girl snuggled in close. "Any thing you wanted to talk about?" she inquired sympathetically, turning the wheel slightly to avoid another pothole.

"No, not really," Misty explained, looking out the front window at the way the headlights barely illuminated the poorly maintained road, "You got a large delivery call, and I needed a boulder badge. Simple as that."

"Bad memories, eh?"

"Kinda," Misty admitted, smiling in spite of herself as Miranda half hugged her, "But at least we both won our challenges. I suppose that kinda counts as closure."

"One more ghost of the past not haunting you," replied Miranda mostly rhetorically, trying not to yawn, "But are you sure that you're okay with us heading to Cerulean? It's not like either of us actually needs a Cascade Badge."

Misty watched the road for a few moments before answering. "It's no big deal," she said, a small smile coming to her as she snuggled against Miranda, "I have you to look out for me, and with you by my side I know I can stand up to my sisters."

"That's good," replied Miranda, giving Misty a small hug, wishing she could kiss her, but the thought of going off the road wasn't the least bit intriguing, "Just remember, you're your own person. Not your sister's plaything."

Misty nodded in agreement; trying not to dwell upon the literally hundreds of times her sisters had manipulated her into doing things she didn't want to. "Last time you were there," asked Misty, trying to change the subject a little, "how did you get along with them?"

Miranda shrugged. "It really wasn't a social call," she explained as the passed another sign advertising a rest stop just a ways ahead, "You see, I kinda got into a small argument with this trainer about which one of us had better pokemon. It was silly really, but he insulted Nezumi, and I couldn't let go by..."

Misty glanced up at Miranda and smiled. "You really love him, don't you?" she asked rhetorically.

Miranda thought about it for a moment, her mind becoming a bit cloudy after the long drive over rough terrain. "He's my second acquisition," explained the courier, "But he's favorite. I suppose it's because he makes me laugh and reminds me how to smile when I forget but also he's just too darn cute sometimes."

Misty smiled, snuggling closer and awkwardly putting her arms around Miranda. "I love you too," she sighed contently, her heart swelling with emotion, "I just hope Umi, Wraith or especially Nezumi don't get jealous!"

"Yeah," chuckled Miranda, giving Misty a gentle half hug, "but I think they understand. If not, Nezumi will explain it to them. They listen to him, and he's good at understanding humans it seems. Which is odd, because dratini are the one's who're mildly empathic."

"Maybe it's because Nezumi spends more time outside of his pokeball," Misty suggested, "And Umi is still quite young in dragon years."

"She'll be fifteen in November," Miranda agreed, slowing as the exit off Route 4 to a rest stop loomed closer, "Nezumi's only five, but he's older in rattata years. Anyway, I wound up having to show that guy in Cerulean why rattatas are just as good as eevees-"

"Did, did you say 'eevee'?" interrupted Misty, glancing up at Miranda with an expression that crossed shocking realization with bemusement.

The woman nodded. "Yeah, why?"

"No reason," chuckled Misty, "Go on."

Miranda gave Misty a suspiciously amused glance as she pulled into the parking area and killed the engine. "Anyway," she continued, adding so much emphasis to the word that Misty almost burst out laughing, "we went to the park and had it out. And that's about it."

Misty gave Miranda a look of unsatisfied curiosity, making it her turn to laugh.

"Okay, okay," she chuckled, shutting off the headlights and unbuckling her seatbelt, "It was a tie. Now then, what's with the eevee?"

Misty exhaled her held breath, smiling and shaking her head as she unbuckled herself as well before getting a little more comfortable. "By any chance, was his name 'Gary'?" she asked, "With an eevee named 'Lilith'?"

Miranda glanced out the windshield at the now more visible stars. "Yeah, Gary something or other," she replied thoughtfully, "I don't really remember, though. Is he another friend of yours?"

"Goodness, no!" laughed Misty, "He's an obnoxious braggart! But then, I'm beginning to think that's a common trait amongst Pallet boys."

"Ah, I see," replied Miranda, turning back to Misty, "he's a friend of Ash's."

"More like a rival," corrected Misty, swinging her legs onto the seat so she could sit in Miranda's lap with her back against the door.

Miranda smirked. "You know," she said slyly, wrapping her arms around her beloved, "it's a good thing he's got a real attitude problem..."

"Oh? Why's that?" inquired Misty in amused suspicion, resting her arms on Miranda's shoulders, awkwardly encircling her neck.

"Because he's kinda cute," Miranda responded, almost unable to keep from laughing.

"Should I be jealous?" Misty asked, bowing her head a little so that she could look up at Miranda with a pitiful look.

"Only if he suddenly becomes an irresistibly beautiful trainer specializing in water pokemon," Miranda replied, her voice becoming quiet as their lips moved closer, "And of course he'd have to change his disposition to be that of someone who is both sweet and full of fire. Becoming someone that I would treasure even beyond death. Someone so special that my heart nearly bursts every time I look into her eyes and her devotion reflected in them."

Misty pressed her lips against Miranda's, cutting her off again in an attempt to ease the emotional buildup she felt. Her lover offered up no resistance, instead holding the girl closer, and tilting her head obligingly as they kissed, running her hands down Misty's back affectionately.

"I do love you," assured Misty breathlessly as she pulled back, "More than I've ever loved anyone or anything."

"Thank you," Miranda replied, brushing her nose against Misty's, "I never grow wary of hearing that."

Misty nodded slowly, the feeling of safety in Miranda's arms making her wish the courier could hold her forever. "If I wasn't so tired I'd show you just how much I love you," she assured, kissing Miranda teasingly, playfully nibbling her bottom lip.

"That's okay," Miranda assured, sighing contentedly as Misty's fingers brushed her bangs out of her eyes, "I love you for you, not for what you can do 'for' me. If I was suddenly cursed so that all I could do was hold you; that would be enough. If the Heavens above decreed that may only kiss you but once a day, my heart would almost burst, but it would still be enough. And if distance itself separated us physically, even staring across a bottomless chasm into your eyes would be enough. I love you, Misty. With out condition, and without regret."

Her beloved let out a long sigh, resting her head on Miranda's shoulder, basking in the moment. "You're as beautiful as your poetry," she sighed, closing her eyes and nuzzling Miranda's neck.

"My muse gives me little rest, my love," assured Miranda with a chuckle, "But I guess I'm just hunting for a perfect moment."

"A perfect moment?" inquired Misty, looking up suddenly into the stormy gray depths of Miranda's suddenly distant gaze.

"Yes," the woman explained reminiscently, "In my Father's diary, he wrote that he had two such moments. He would even ponder them, trying to decide which was more perfect, because you can only have one perfect moment. He never wrote which it was, so I suppose they both were..."

"What were they?" asked Misty in a quiet tone, knowing how thoughts of her deceased father affected the woman.

Miranda smiled. "The day he found Selece was the first," she explained quietly, "He found a clutch of eggs on the beach one summer when he was in Porta Vista, but most of them had been broken open and devoured by sea birds. He never found out what happened to the parents, but he brought the surviving egg home and hatched it. That's why I have Umi..." Miranda smiled at the memory, "But the 'perfect' moment came when that egg hatched. The first thing little Selece saw was my father. Their eyes met, and there was instant love. And somehow, that dratini conveyed his desire to be named Selece. So he basically named himself."

"Was it the same for you with Umi?" Misty inquired, wiping away Miranda's tear for her.

The courier nodded. "Yes, I remember my parents waking me up at three in the morning and rushing me into the Cavern. I was only wearing a nightdress, and didn't have time to even dawn some slippers, so the hot sands beneath my feet was almost unbearable. But when I walked in, and saw that Undine was backing away from her eggs, I knew it was something important! My Father wanted my experience with my dratini to be even more special that his own. And it was... I'll never forget the first few cracks that appeared upon the shell. The pitiful cries as that the sweet baby dragon pushed against the walls of her egg, until finally shattering it into a thousand pieces! Then her little eyes shifting from red to green as she saw me... I knew her name in that instant. Just like with my Father. And I knew she hungry too! Although I wasn't officially 'given' Umi until Umi was old enough to leave her parents, and I was old enough to handle the responsibility. Those were very happy years, though..."

"Before it all ended," concluded Misty, seeing the sad look in Miranda's eyes, "But at least you still have Umi..."

"That's true," whispered Miranda, determined not to cry as she continued her story, "The second moment for my Father, though, was when I was born. I have a picture at home of him and my mom together that day. They look so happy with me, little more than a bundle of blankets between them. It was a long harsh Winter, but I added warmth to both their lives."

"You, you don't resent your Mother's decision to remarry, do you?" Misty asked carefully.

"Goodness no," Miranda chuckled quietly, shaking her head in amusement, "I like Bob. He makes my mother happy, and that's all that matters. But, much like my Father, my moments keep competing for the title of Perfection."

"And may I ask, what moments are currently in the running?" inquired Misty a touch coyly.

Miranda closed her eyes and smiled. "Right now is something of a front runner," she admitted, "But I think the first time you told you loved me ranks pretty high. As does Umi's hatching... Like father like daughter, I suppose. Hm, I have his eyes, you know. Gray as the sky on a cloudy day, just before a storm. Except that in my case, I guess it's a snow storm, because that's what I was born during."

"That's okay," assured Misty, thinking back to their last vid-  
phone conversation with Vivian Lilcamp, "I think you look better with gray eyes, rather than magenta."

Miranda suppressed a laugh as she removed her glasses. "That's true," she agreed, "but I received my vision defect from my Father."

"That's okay," assured Misty, "I think your glasses add a certain intelligent look to your over all appearance. I like that."

"I'm glad!" replied Miranda, giving Misty a sarcastically relieved look.

"How about me, though?" the trainer inquired, taking Miranda's glasses from her and sliding them onto her own face.

Miranda leaned back a little, examining the effect. "I never realized how big those make my eyes look!" she commented, reaching up to untie Misty's hair so that it fell free, "Hey, not bad..."

"Think so?" Misty giggled, trying unsuccessfully to focus, even though Miranda's prescription wasn't that strong.

"Yes," Miranda agreed with a smile, sliding the spectacles off, "Very cute. But you'll hurt yourself if you wear these for too long."

"Oh, my heroine," said Misty jokingly as Miranda put them away, taking a moment to stretch her legs out, "Oh! Sorry!"

There was a suddenly dull thud as Miranda's clipboard slid off the far end of the seat. "Tis okay," the courier assured, looking over and trying to make out the image of the clipboard in the darkness, "I'm sure its fine."

"Hey, what's on here, anyway?" commented Misty, suddenly struck by her impulsive curiosity as she leaned forward and reached under the dashboard, "I never thought to ask."

"Food for some fancy restaurant," answered Miranda with a shrug, "We get that sometimes. It's usually local delicacies that need to be shipped from far away to please immigrants. That's why the back of the truck is refrigerated."

"I noticed," said Misty, leafing through the papers and squinting to read the words, "Twenty-eight boxes of an eighty piece order. I guess someone else is delivering the next load."

"It's probably something that needs an over night shipment," Miranda explained, "Like sushi or something. Oh well, the job's not glamorous, but I prefer it to working in Admin. It pays better too!"

"And this from the sole heir to the family fortune," Misty commented slyly, sending Miranda a sideways glance.

"Hey! You're right!" gasped Miranda in mock surprise, "I'd better call mom and Bob to tell them to get crackin' and make me some step siblings soon, or I'll have to become a 'real' responsible adult by the time I'm like fifty! What'll I do!"

"Well, I'd better be careful too!" added Misty, laughing in spite of her wariness, "Because if something happens to my sisters, I'll inherit a pokemon gym!"

Miranda smiled, taking Misty's chin in her hand and tilting Misty's head to making eye contact. "Then I shall bequeath my fortune to my Aunt Laurna and learn to raise fish!" she concluded, "For a few thousand credits and some cracked china cannot compare to the treasure of your love..."

Misty sighed contently as Miranda's lips pressed against her own for a few precious moments. "And in my case," she chuckled between kisses, "I'd rather have you than the world's biggest fish tank any day!"

Miranda pulled back, unable to keep from laughing. "It's more than that," she chuckled, smiling adoringly at Misty as she shook her head, "A pokemon gym's supposed to be a sacred place, something to be taken seriously. They don't give official gym status to just anyone."

"I know," assured Misty wistfully, "but so is love. It's a precious thing and should never just be cast aside, or put off. It should take precedence over everything!"

"I must be rubbing off on you," replied Miranda with an amused smile before sitting up a little straighter and stretching out, "Which isn't a bad thing, really. But sleeping in this position just might be."

"You're probably right," Misty agreed, backing away and setting the clipboard on the dash, "Do you think we'll be warm enough tonight, though?"

"More than likely," replied Miranda teasingly, making Misty blush as she shuffled down to the opposite door and pulled it open.

"Yeah, you're probably right," responded Misty coyly, bowing her head to hide her reaction as she unlocked the backrest and pulled it forward a short distance, "It'll be at least a few weeks before the cooler weather comes."

Miranda leaned forward as she opened her door and slid out. "I guess that means we'll hit Cerulean in time for the End Of Summer Festival," she commented, taking in a deep lungful of the cool night air.

"Hey! You're right," responded Misty, pulling her sleeping bag out from behind the seat, and waiting for Miranda to retrieve her own before slamming the backrest into place once more, "I wonder if this delivery's for the festival?"

"More than likely," replied Miranda, making her way around the truck to make sure everything was in order, "Eighty some odd creates of food does seem a bit much."

"I wonder if there's any ice-cream..." pondered Misty hopefully as Miranda came around to her side and gave one of the tires a light tap with her shoe.

"That's dishonest," said the courier in an amused tone, "Besides, I thought you were worried about keeping warm."

Misty blushed again, causing Miranda to catch her breath as a flood of emotion hit her out of nowhere. "Okay," Misty conceded, in a tone that suggested a scolded child, "I'll be good..."

Miranda shook her head, and put an arm around Misty's shoulders. "But, it can't hurt to look," she replied.

"Yay," Misty responded with token enthusiasm and a mischievous smile as Miranda lead her around to the back of the truck, "But just remember, Miri, we're just looking!"

Miranda gave her an amused sideways glance. "I promise if you do," she replied, dropping her sleeping bag on the ground and letting go of Misty so she could open the back doors.

"Well, okay," giggled Misty as the metal latches strained against Miranda's efforts to unhinge them.

"Must be the temperature," the woman commented as the mechanism unlocked and she strained against the door, "It's frozen shut."

"No problem!" announced Misty, her enthusiasm getting the best of her as she pulled out a pokeball, "Leviathan, you're up!"

Miranda's eyes widened as she took a step back, trying to stammer out an appropriate objection while her beloved tossed out the pokeball. It opened a moment later, and from the crimson light Misty's gyarados materialized.

The monstrous sea serpent bowed its head and turned his gaze towards his mistress. "Gyaaaa," he growled contentedly as Misty scratched his eye ridges affectionately and Miranda could only shake her head in amused dismay.

"I need to you heat the doors up," his trainer explained in a maternal tone, her voice going up and octave as she spoke to her latest pokemon acquisition, "But just a little, okay?"

Leviathan leaned back and nodded, something resembling a smile coming to his lips as he stared down at Misty adoringly. "This- this could be misconstrued as a touch excessive," stammered Miranda, giving the pokemon a wide breadth as she went to stand at Misty's side while the gyarados began making a sinister hissing sound.

"Well, he does have to practice his dragon rage technique," chuckled Misty as small orange flames flickered between Leviathan's twin rows of razor sharp teeth, "And neither of us really have any fire pokemon."

"I've always found them a touch unreliable," admitted Miranda. "Except for growlithes. Cops use them for that reason, I suppose. Too bad their unavailable as starter poke's for Lavender Brats."

"'Lavender Brats'?" inquired Misty, the flames lighting up her face in the dim light.

Miranda nodded, smiling reminiscently. "That's what a lot of people call pokemon trainers from Lavender," she explained, "It started out as derogatory, something about a disagreement with some Sunny Town residence as I recall, but we're proud of the nickname now."

"I have trouble seeing you as a 'brat'," laughed Misty, leaning against Miranda as Leviathan carefully blew a light dusting of orange flame against the back doors of the panel truck, "A 'Lavender Girl', maybe, but not a 'Lavender Brat'."

Miranda titled her head and looked down at Misty with a serious look. "I wasn't always the person I am today," she said teasingly, "And I'm sure you were quite a handful for your parents when you were young too!"

"My, my parents..." muttered Misty, suddenly looking glum before becoming alarmed, "Leviathan! That's enough"  
The gyarados gave his trainer a sideways glance. "Dooosss?" he inquired, blinking his huge amber eyes innocently, oblivious to the fact that the paint had peeled off and the door was beginning to melt.

"Stop!" Misty ordered, holding out Leviathan's pokeball and activating it, "That's enough for now."

The pokemon gave an apologetic sound, and looked downcast as he dematerialized and was once again and drawn back into his pokeball.

"I'm sorry," came Miranda's quiet apology as Misty stepped forward, leaving Miranda suddenly feeling very cold and alone, "I, I didn't mean to..."

"It's okay," assured Misty, staring off into the space between herself and the now smoking doors, "It my fault for never mentioning it to you. I, I think that you of all people have right to know."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," assured Miranda, her stomach twisting into knots as guilt hit her conscience rather hard.

Misty shook her head. "There's not much to tell," she continued after taking a deep breath, "My parent's Fate was nowhere near as dramatic or even interesting as you might think. They were lost at sea, that's all. It was supposed to be a second honeymoon to the Orange Islands, and their ship went down in a storm..."

"I see," Miranda replied, coming up behind Misty and placing her hands carefully upon Misty's shoulders, half wondering if she should.

"Don't worry," assured Misty, closing her eyes and bowing her head to hide her tears as she put her hands over Miranda's, "It's just that I'm not as strong as you are, Miranda. As you've said, I'm full of life. It makes it hard to deal with death, so I ignore it, or try to forget about it. You're comment just caught me off guard, 'tis all."

"I'm still sorry," said Miranda, sliding her arms around Misty from behind and holding her close, "I guess that I'm just so used to mourning my own losses, that I forget that other people have them too."

Misty snickered in spite of herself. "It's funny," she commented, resting her head upon Miranda's shoulder and staring up at the stars, "I almost envy you."

"How so?"

The trainer inhaled the now warm air and held it for a moment before speaking, hoping that her tears would stop. "It's stupid really," she replied, "just a silly childish jealousy. You'd only laugh at me."

"No," corrected Miranda, "Nothing you say or feel is silly. You mean everything to me, and if there's something on your mind, I want to hear it."

"Okay," continued Misty, glancing into Miranda's caring eyes, "Here goes. You see, you have a story to tell when it comes to your family tragedy. The Rockets came to steal your parent's pokemon, and everything went horribly wrong. You have someone you can point to, and say 'You killed my Father, you murdered Undine and Selece, and your stupid machoke paralyzed your Mother. Who do I have blame? Who do can I seek revenge upon for dramatically changing my life for the worse? Nature? Fate? Blind luck!"

"Misty..." choked Miranda, holding the girl as close as she could, the sight of her beloved tears, and the pain in her voice cutting though her usual calm and leaving behind a numb sorrow.

"I, I told you it was stupid and childish," replied Misty, her small fingers digging into Miranda's forearms as she held on for support, "Being envious of such a thing... I'm nothing like my sisters!"

"Misty!" exclaimed Miranda through her own tears, turning her beloved around before taking hold of her shoulders and meeting her gaze, "It's- It's all right. And not being like your sisters is a good thing."

Misty met Miranda's gaze and nodded. "Thank you," she whispered; falling into her lover's embrace, "You seem to be able to put up with so much..."

"I'm not putting up with anything," assured Miranda a little indignantly, "And it's not childish, it's just human. It's not stupid, it just means that you aspire to greatness. And that's a good thing."

Misty pulled away and looked up at Miranda once again, smiling weakly. "Is this what it's like?" she inquired, her heart feeling a little less burdened to have someone love me? To put up with my moods? To listen to my problems? To not just cast me aside because I don't live up to some stupid outdated 'beauty myth'!"

Miranda found a smile tugging at the edges of her mouth as well, and quickly succumbed to it. "I'm thinking that it might be," she replied with mock uncertainty, feeling her heart rejoice proportionately to Misty's mood improvement, "But I'm not sure. We may need to research this theorem."

Misty laughed as Miranda leaned down to give her a light kiss. "Oh, and it was a Machop at the time," the woman added, finding it surprisingly easy to contain her negative feelings at speaking the word, "When we saw him last, he'd evolved."

"Oh, sorry," replied Misty thoughtfully, "But let's change the subject, okay? Hm. You never did finish telling me about that time you won a cascade badge..."

Miranda smirked reminiscently. "Oh yeah, that," she chuckled, "You know, I only challenged them because I tied with Gary. It seemed like a logical choice at the time. Which one of us could walk away with a badge."

"And you both did," finished Misty, placing her head upon Miranda's shoulder and nuzzling her neck, "So I guess you're still even. Oh, and I hate to mention it, but you forgot your glasses."

"Yeah, I know," responded Miranda jokingly, "just don't go too far or else I'll loose sight of you!"

"Even if we weren't in the middle of nowhere, I'd still prefer to be safe in your arms," the girl replied as Miranda reached out her hand testingly to see if the metal had cooled.

"Not even to perchance snag a few mouthfuls of your favorite dessert?" Miranda inquired slyly, "I think we can get in now."

"No," said Misty, shaking her head and laughing at Miranda's sudden sarcastically shocked look, "I'm sorry, but I'd rather just get ready for bed. Ice-cream can wait until tomorrow."

"Wow..." replied Miranda, barely keeping from laughing as she tried keep acting like she as in shock, suddenly realizing that the door was indeed melted shut, and thankful for the change of subject, "I- I don't believe it! Like, this is the big one!"

Misty laughed out loud as Miranda backed away, clutching her heart melodramatically, and waving her free hand in the air. "M-Misty doesn't want ice-cream! Ah! My heart can't take that kind of a shock! Quick, call a doctor! Oh no, It's too late, make that an undertaker!"

"Oh you!" laughed Misty as Miranda fell carefully backwards onto the ground and faked a heart attack as her voice echoed off the nearby mountain range.

"Me?" inquired Miranda all too innocently, looking up with a toothy grin, "You're the one we should worry about! My poor Misty... Loosing her appetite for ice-cream... Oh! What is this cruel world coming to?"

"Stop it!" the girl laughed, walking over and straddling Miranda's hips, "You're embarrassing me!"

Miranda held out her arms and smiled. "There's only one way to stop me," she teased.

Misty laughed and fell into Miranda's arms, kissing her repeatedly as the two rolled over several times, both of them giggling at themselves, laughing until their stomachs ached from the humorous exertion, and their hair and clothes were damp and covered in loose bits of grass.

"Had enough?" teased Misty as she lay atop Miranda, staring down at the courier with her hair full of twigs and dead leaves.

Miranda smiled, playfully kissing Misty on the nose as she tried not to laugh. "For now," she promised with a sigh, "I guess you're just too much for me."

Misty sat up, a sad look crossing her face as she straddled Miranda's hips. "Don't you love me?" she inquired with false sadness, causing Miranda to sit straight up and hug Misty protectively.

"I don't think that love's a strong enough word," she teased, making Misty laugh as she tried to find a stronger word, "Looove, perhaps? Or lub? Or loolooove!"

"Just 'love' will do!" Misty laughed, kissing Miranda before getting to her feet and holding out her hands, "And I 'looooloooove you too!"

Miranda grinned at her own silliness accepting Misty's offer to help her up. "Come on," she said, picking a twig from Misty's hair, "let's get cleaned up a bit and make use of those sleeping bags. It's kinda late and I'd rather not go off the road in the morning."

Misty nodded slowly, enjoying the feeling of Miranda's fingers searching her hair for more bits of foliage. "I'll find us something to wear," she offered, tugging her damp shirt away from her body, "'cause I dread the thought of sleeping in wet clothes!"

"Especially socks," shuddered Miranda as they walked back to the truck, "Oh, and can you grab the keys? I'd rather keep them with me."

Misty nodded and headed towards the cab as Miranda grabbed their sleeping bags so she could unfurl and zip them together. "Is the nightshirt with the rattata okay for you?" called Misty from a short distance away.

Miranda glanced up from her work and smiled as she saw Misty climbing part way into the truck's cab in search of their backpacks. A moment later, Misty was lying across the front seat, only her lower half visible as she rifled through their belongings for what was needed. As she watched for a moment, feeling a bit of a voyeuristic thrill as her lover's denim clad legs flailed a bit as Misty went about her work, the water-trainer's bottom making and all too tempting target.

"That's, that's just fine dear!" called Miranda suppressing shiver that had nothing to do with the chill in the night air.

The courier then found it a little difficult to concentrate on her work, watching Misty scramble a little farther inside as the light from the overhead lamp illuminated Misty's visible bottom half. Misty then issued a small curse as some inanimate object or other incurred a slight portion of her wrath, and lifted her leg to maintain balance, yet the effect remained unbroken.

"I'm such a pervert," sighed Miranda, shaking her head at the thoughts running through her mind as she stood contemplating Misty's shapely legs while her hands worked on their sleeping arrangements with practiced moves she could have done in her sleep, "But I just can't help it. She's just so cute..."

"You say something?" inquired Misty, pulling herself out of the truck and slamming the door shut.

"Oh, nothing," replied Miranda as Misty tossed her the keys, "Just acquiring some inspiration."

"You've been writing quite a bit lately," Misty commented as she began to strip off her damp clothes, "Are you ever going to get any of that stuff published?"

"Maybe," said Miranda with a noncommittal shrug as she dropped the keys on to the now merged and Twice as spacious sleeping bags a slipped her shirt over her head, "Brr! It's a little chilly out here."

"Try standing by the engine," offered Misty, now standing naked except for her undergarments.

Miranda nodded and went to join her, only to find Misty's arms about her naked torso. "Gotcha," she whispered with a giggle, giving Miranda a hug before letting go and donning a long nightshirt that covered her to the knees.

"Oh, you're no fun!" laughed Miranda with mock disappointment as she slipped off her jeans and hung them over the hood of the truck to dry.

"No, but at least I'm warm!" countered Misty mischievously.

Miranda glanced over her shoulder as she struggled into a loose fitting shirt with the aforementioned rattata on it. She could only smile as Misty buried herself within the warmth of their joined sleeping bags, and shiver as a cool breeze blew past her own bare legs.

"Well, you'd best be moving over," Miranda warned, rushing over and finding the opening, "It's positively freezing out here!"

"Oh, poor you!" Misty sighed in amusement, making room and sighing contentedly as Miranda slid inside the sleeping bag, her arms intent on holding her beloved. "But you know," replied Misty thoughtfully as their arms wrapped around one another, and their legs entwined, "You never finished telling me about that time you challenged my sisters."

"There's not much more to tell," admitted Miranda, thankful for their shared warmth, "As I said, myself and Gary had a little battle, and it turned out to be a draw. So we decided to see who could win out in a battle against the allegedly 'sensational' Cerulean sisters."

Misty chuckled as Miranda rolled her eyes and shook her head. "So I take it you both won then?" asked Misty, to which Miranda shrugged and nodded, "But what happened afterwards? Did you ever resolve the issue?"

Miranda blushed and tried to stammer out a reply. "It's... It's a little odd," she admitted, rousing Misty's curiosity.

"Odd?" she inquired, moving closer and trying to catch Miranda's averted gaze.

"Um, well you see," began Miranda, desperately trying to avoid the topic, but failing miserably, "Well, to be blunt. Gary slept with Violet."

Misty's expression became on of surprise before she burst out laughing. "So," she inquired after calming down enough to breath, "Which one did you sleep with?"

"You," replied Miranda in such a serious tone and with such intensity that Misty was taken back.

"Me?" the trainer inquired, her tone giving away a sudden growing anxiety, "Just me, and only me?"

"Just you," assured Miranda, "Gary said he only did it because he knew I couldn't. I know it was just because he couldn't stand being upstaged. Besides, she's not my type. To... Prissy."

"Yeah, but still," pondered Misty, shaking her head in disbelief, "I can't believe she'd do that!"

"Would your sisters believe that you're here in my arms?" the courier countered, extenuating her point by giving Misty a gentle squeeze.

"No, I suppose not," she agreed, glancing up at the stars, "I guess they're in for quite a shock tomorrow."

"We don't have to go there if you don't want to," Miranda offered, "we can just book a hotel or whatever."

"No," said Misty firmly, "I'm willing to face them so that I can look them in the eye and say 'Hey! I have a right to be happy too!' and if they don't like it, then too bad!"

Miranda smiled, kissing Misty upon the forehead affectionately. "You know what?" she commented wistfully, snuggling closer as she spoke and whispering her words directly into Misty's ear, "I just find your delightful combination of power and vulnerability appealing beyond the dreams of Avarice."

"Yes, but Avarice was only interested in money," Misty pointed out teasingly.

"Ah, but you are a beautiful treasure that even he would have appreciated," countered Miranda, kissing her playfully, "One that I shall never trade for all the money in the world."

"Promises, promises," chuckled Misty, sighing contentedly as Miranda's fingertips lightly traced a path down Misty's side, causing her to jump a little.

"I never make a promise I can't keep," replied Miranda, gently kissing Misty's neck, savoring the warmth of her lover's skin upon her lips as her fingers touched bare hip where Misty's nightshirt had ridden up. Part of Miranda's mind wondered if it was a coincidence, or on purpose, but it hardly mattered.

Misty of moaned softly, feeling perfectly safe and content, even as her lover's hand slid beneath her nightshirt and over her stomach. "Looking for something?" she asked coyly.

"You need only to tell me to stop," responded Miranda, giving Misty's earlobe a gentle nibble as her fingers playfully threatened to slide within her undergarment.

"That's funny," replied Misty, her voice sounding a little distracted, "'cause I- I can't seem to remember how..."

"Just. Say. Stop," said Miranda, speaking each word between kisses along Misty's neck, causing her lover to shiver despite the warmth.

"But I just can't," sighed Misty contentedly, jumping a little in sudden excited anticipation as Miranda's fingers slipped underneath her panties and slowly traced their way across her soft skin.

"But if you don't tell me to stop," countered Miranda as her middle finger slid slowly along the line between Misty's labia, and smiled as she felt a subtle moisture growing there, "I won't. I'll just keep going and going until your cries of passion fill the night, and all the creatures of this place know that this is but one expression of the love that I have for you."

Misty let out a small whimper, closing her eyes and breathing slowly through her mouth as she tried to speak, somehow unable to find the words. Clutching desperately at her lover's back as Miranda's fingers teased her womanhood, sending pleasant chills through her, causing Misty's entire body to tingle.

She couldn't help but let out a small gasp as she felt Miranda's gently probing middle finger slide a little deeper, drawing it slowly back and forth between Misty's labia. She then couldn't help but push herself closer, abandoning herself to the sensation as her fingers clenched and she panted breathlessly in Miranda's ear.  
"Patience," her beloved whispered teasingly in her ear, kissing Misty's neck as she spoke, her free hand moving closer to her own womanhood, "there's no need to rush things."

Misty managed to catch her breath as Miranda's pace slowed. She could still feel the warmth of her lover's hand between her legs, the gentle caress just enough to give her a gentle sensation of euphoria.

"What are you doing?" whispered Misty, feeling Miranda's body shiver a little.

"N-nothing," came Miranda's giddy reply, and Misty's eyes widened as she reached between them and touched Miranda's hand.

"I-I could help you, you know," she offered, taking hold of both Miranda's hands and gently guiding them.

"I'm fine," the courier replied with a smile, shivering pleasantly at her lover's touch, "But for now, just show me what you want."

Misty smiled, gently pushing the Miranda's middle finger inside herself. The little cry she let out in response, causing Miranda a convulsive shiver as she closed her eyes and held onto the moment.

"Right there..." Misty gasped, her voice breathless as Miranda felt a deep need building inside herself.

"Like this?" teased Miranda, dragging her wetted fingers up to Misty's clit as she let Misty guide her other hand, copying the motion almost exactly.

"No," whimpered Misty, her breathing coming in long drawn out breathes, "I need to feel you inside me. Like this..."

Miranda gasped, shivering happily as Misty pushed her hand back down and felt her finger slide inside herself. The courier couldn't help but smile, knowing that that was exactly what Misty suddenly desperately wanted as she made slow playful circles upon Misty's clit, teasing her lover as she rotated the small nub with a wetted finger that seemed to know just what to do. "Here," the girl offered, sliding one hand between Miranda's gently rubbing thigh and her own womanhood. With a small-  
embarrassed exclamation, Misty slid her finger inside herself before bringing her hand up to her shoulder,

"Please, Miri," came Misty's almost desperate tone, the pressure of her fingers upon the courier's back increasing, "I need you so much!"

Misty's voice bordered on pleading and Miranda felt as though she'd melt at the sound. "As you wish, my beloved," she whispered, at last obeying the request.

Misty arched her back in reaction to the sudden sensation, her breasts pressing invitingly against Miranda's as she tried to stifle her voice. For a moment, she merely clung to Miranda, her mind swimming as her lover's finger did its work, barely noticing as the courier abandoned her own pleasure and moved her free hand up under Misty's shirt.

She couldn't help but shiver and move as close as possible as Miranda's hand cupped her small breast, the woman's fingers clasping the nipple and gently squeezing it as the others caressed her skin.

"Wha- What are you-?" Misty began, hardly thinking straight as the sensation filled her and she kissed Miranda's neck affectionately in hopes of letting some of it out.

"Nothing..." chuckled Miranda, her voice full of mischief, her middle finger sliding deeper as her thumb moved to rub Misty's clit, "Just making you the center of my undivided attention."

"But- But what a- about you?" Misty gasped, but Miranda leaned her head back, and caught her lover's lips in a kiss. One Misty couldn't the desire to pull away from as she kissing back with every ounce of passion she could muster.

"Just- Just don't stop," she panted, pulling away to catch her breath and Miranda smiled at the look in Misty's eyes.

"Not unless you tell me to," Miranda assured, the sound of Misty's now incoherent, yet lovely voice filling her ears and bringing moisture to her nether regions even without the girl's touch and making her shiver unconsciously.

"Miri-?" Misty inquired helplessly, first feeling Miranda stop, then noticing the way Miranda's body quivered, and finally heard the gasping sound of the courier's quiet exclamation that accompanied the sudden look upon her face.

Misty giggled quietly, enjoying the feeling Miranda's body against her own before mischievously reaching down to continue guiding her lover's fingers. "Sorry, dearest," replied Miranda after a moment, an embarrassed tone to her voice, "I guess you just 'pushed the right buttons' there for a second. Now then, were was I...?"

As her finger slid back and forth, Misty's inner walls pressing firmly against it, Miranda's other hand traced its fingertips across her lover's breast. Touching lightly against the soft, yet firm flesh she found, Miranda moved across from one to the other, lightly dragging her fingers as she went.

"Is this okay?" she whispered, watching Misty's expression, knowing that there was little she could do that her lover would object to, but selfishly loving the sound of Misty's voice when it was lost in ecstasy.

"Wo- wonderful-!" Misty stammered, to which Miranda could only sigh happily as her lovingly cupped the breast she had found, squeezing it with fond gentleness and half wishing to be rid of the nightshirts they both wore.

"What's wonderful?" inquired Miranda, leaning forward and tracing the tip of her tongue along Misty's earlobe, following its natural curve in a gesture as teasing as her tone, "Tell me, dearest. I want to know..."

Misty shuddered a little, and Miranda could feel her body heat intensify from both the building sensation as well as her embarrassment. "Your- your fingers..." Misty managed to stammer after several shallow breaths.

"My fingers?" inquired Miranda, slowing her pace despite the way her lover tried to move her hand, "what about them?"

Miranda gave Misty's nipple a playful squeeze as the girl tried to speak again, causing her to suddenly stretch out and dig her nails into Miranda's back almost painfully. She then let out a sound that started out low, and slowly grew into a long, drawn out cry of ecstasy that though not loud, spoke volumes. The sound was musical in its own way, and Miranda could almost feel the waves of pleasure coursing through her lover as Misty's body shuddered before going limp, all the tension in her body finally relaxing.

"You- You know well enough..." panted Misty with a smile, glancing over up at Miranda, the courier's stormy gray eyes still holding a hint of mischief.

"Hm, can I help it if I'm verbally stimulated?" replied Miranda innocently, before laughing and giving Misty a kiss on the cheek.

Misty closed her eyes, smiling as she snuggled closer. "If that's all it took," pondered Misty, "Then all I'd have to do is whisper things to you, and there you'd go."

"That wouldn't be much fun," commented Miranda, her tone shifting from thoughtful to amused as her fingers continued to idly caress her lover's intimated areas, "Unless you did it at awkward moments..."

Misty laughed at the prospect, but caught her breath and let out a giggling moan as her mind focused on the sensation once more. "And speaking of which," she inquired, "What about you?"

"What about me?" inquired Miranda, her arms going around Misty's body as one leg moved to hold hers, thus holding Misty as closely as possible.

"You're willing to just lie there, bringing me to ecstasy again, and again, with out worrying about yourself?" she asked rhetorically.

"Sometimes just holding you is enough," answered Miranda, giving Misty a playful kiss upon the nose, "And besides, it's not as though I'm bored. I rather enjoy 'watching' you..."

Misty bowed her head and smiled. "You're too much," she replied, glancing up and giving Miranda a serious look, "But are you sure you're alright? It may be rather late at night, but I-"

"Shhh," whispered Miranda, placing a finger against her lover's lips to silence her. "I'm fine," she explained with a small, reassuring smile, "That's just it. It's late, and I have a fair bit of driving to do in the morning. Besides you know me. When I get too hot and bothered, I'm up half the night!"

"That's true," laughed Misty, shaking her head in wonder, "But I think you had just one tiny one while you were 'pleasing' me."

"One tiny what?" inquired Miranda, her tone teasing as she leaned close and gave Misty a conspirative look.

"You know!" whispered Misty as loudly as she dared, her cheeks turning red as she glanced around nervously.

"Tell me," her lover replied playfully, her fingers moving down Misty's flank in a gentle tickling motion.

"Why?" the girl laughed, twitching as the sensation finally became too much to bear.

"Maybe I just like hearing you say things like that," chuckled Miranda, idly running her fingertips down under Misty's nightshirt before coming up again and brushing her skin more attentively.

"Do you have any other fetishes I should worry about?" asked Misty, jerking forward suddenly, arching her back to avoid being tickled.

"Maybe..." the courier replied, playfully kissing the end of Misty's nose before laying her palm flat and running her hand over her lover's back, "But I'd have to say that bringing you to the brink of ecstasy again and again is fairly high on the list."

Misty smiled as Miranda moved closer. "So, how about you?" her lover countered, causing Misty to smile nervously and glance away, "Anything I should be worried about? Anything I should take a book out on and study?"

"I-! I-!" stammered Misty, giving up and simply burying her face in Miranda's ample hair and making her laugh at the gesture. "I really wouldn't know," Misty confessed, relaxing as she felt Miranda's warm touch upon her back, her beloved's fingers no longer tickling, but caressing in a familiar, comforting way.

"Well, I'm here to help if you need me," Miranda assured, unable to keep the amusement from her tone as Misty moved her head back to face her.

"I know," she replied softly, giving Miranda a gentle kiss upon the lips, "but right now, I'm happy and totally content. Thank you, Miranda."

Her lover closed her eyes, basking in the moment of well-being as wariness began to creep up on her. "You're welcome, my love," she replied, opening her eyes just enough to hold Misty's image in her mind while she slept, "sleep well."

Misty nodded, snuggling closer to Miranda, and waiting patiently for the courier's breathing to begin to slow. "Miranda," whispered Misty into her ear, a smile she couldn't contain crossing her face.

"Yes?" she inquired quietly, feeling a touch guilty for drifting off so quickly.

"Orgasm!" whispered Misty directly into Miranda's ear, causing her to laugh despite her wariness.

"Oh, go to sleep you!" the courier replied, trying to sound stern, but only succeeding in laughing as Misty gave her one final hug goodnight...

Chapter III

It was early in the evening of the next day by the time the Western gates of Cerulean City were visible. Beyond them, the main road stretched out all the way out to Route 9, intersected by several dozen lesser roads, including the main North to South road that marked the easiest routes to the Gym and the South gate...

"Won't be long now," commented Miranda, taking the notepad off the dashboard and checking the small scrawled map she'd been given, "then we can drop off this junk heap. Apparently another courier's supposed to take it somewhere else after we're done."

"That's good," replied Misty, leaning back with her feet firmly placed against the dashboard, her arms hugging her legs, her head on her knees and looking bored, "I feel like we've been driving forever. And it would be nice just to walk around for a bit. See what's changed since I've been gone."

"It's worse in the Winter," Miranda told her, shaking her head as Nezumi ran down her arm from her shoulder and sat on the steering wheel in hopes of seeing what it was that the humans were all on about, "You almost never get to ride your bike anywhere, and you wind up walking. Mostly on snowshoes if you're up north, which always takes longer."

"No secret shortcuts that way?" inquired Misty, glancing over at Miranda with a sly grin.

"What?" inquired Miranda in mock defensiveness, the beginnings of a silly grin crossing her face, "I doubt that that farmer will even notice the those two or three stalks of corn we knocked over."

"Two or three dozen," countered Misty mirthfully, smiling as she shook her head at the memory, "And didn't the news report say something about 'cutting a path of destruction'?"

"Details, details," laughed Miranda at Misty's exaggeration. "Besides," she teased, slowing the truck's speed as they entered the city limits where Route 4 became Sea Breeze Way, "whose idea was it to pull the fire alarm so we could use the elevator that time at the Pewter City Museum?"

"Um, it was Nezumi's!" stammered Misty, looking around nervously and causing the rattata to glace over at her with an alarmed expression, making both humans laugh.

"She's just kidding," chuckled Miranda, scratching Nezumi between the ears in a reassuring manner, "Although you're lucky I'm not a literal person."

Misty smiled, leaning against Miranda as several familiar buildings slid by her vision as they traveled. "Yeah," she sighed, "Although it's too bad that security guard thought I was serious."

Miranda shrugged, turning the wheal as reached a street called Staryu Lane. "Well some people just aren't as laid back as they should be," she replied with a sudden shudder, "And we got the package delivered eventually. Although I never want to walk up seven flights of stairs carrying an eighty pound, sixty-five million-year-old femur EVER again."

"For sure," commented Misty, nodding in agreement before sitting up straight and squinting against the light of the setting sun, "Hey, is that it there?"

Miranda pushed her glasses farther up her nose and nodded. "I believe so," she said, quickly checking her map again, "Just have to find the service entrance now."

The old truck rattled, shaking unpleasantly as it slowed and turned into the restaurant at the end of the street's nearly empty parking lot. Glancing out at the two story building, Misty could see that the wall of windows that covered the front half of the restaurant were still covered in brown paper to conceal whatever last minute renovations were in progress. Above the door, a huge sign proclaiming "Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue" was only partially covered by a smaller sign that read "Opening Soon!"

The back of the building, in contrast to the friendly inviting whitewashed brickwork of the front, seemed rather dingy and dull. The ruddy coloured bricks the building was made of were already grimy from the exhaust fumes of several delivery vehicles, and dumpster they passed on the way to the loading dock was already brimming with dark sealed bags of unspeakable refuse.

As Miranda shifted into reverse and leaned out the window so she could line the back end up with the large square doorway of the loading dock, Misty grabbed her arm. "Look out!" she exclaimed pointing to the passenger side mirror.

"Oh, for-" began Miranda, breaking hard as she caught site of a figure running foolishly through her temporary blind spot and heading towards her side of the truck. "Z- Zack!" she stammered, smiling broadly as the figure of a tall man with unkempt red hair leapt up onto the driver's side running board and grabbed hold of the door.

"Miranda!" he exclaimed, grinning like an idiot as the rattata gave an excited shout and leapt onto the windowsill, "Oh! Hey, Nezumi!"

"A friend of yours?" inquired Misty, leaning forward to see past Miranda and the excitedly babbling Nezumi.

"A friend?" laughed Zack, giving Misty a winning smile that seemed a touch on the crazy side, "I'm like a big brother!"

"More like a big bother, you mean," chuckled Miranda, leaning to see around see around him as she continued to back up, "So, what brings you here, Zachary?"

"Hey, that's 'Zack'," he corrected in what passed for a stern tone, but didn't quite make it, "Anywhat, I'm the lucky courier who gets the privilege of driving this heap down to Saffron after you're done with it. By the way, who's your friend?"

Miranda gave a hint of a satisfied smile as she lined the back of the truck up perfectly with the loading dock. "Her name's Misty," the courier explained, glancing back and smiling at her, "Misty, this is Zack. He's a courier as well, but..."

"But...?" inquired both Misty and Zack, one with a leery tone, the other with a sly grin.

"But you're absolutely crazy!" Miranda exclaimed meeting Zack's wide blue eyes with her own version of his hyper attitude.

"Hey, I'm an insane genius," he defended, hanging onto the door as Miranda swung it open and hopped out.

"Well, it is true that your IQ is in excess of two hundred," replied Miranda in a neutral tone as she leaned back into the truck and pulled out her clipboard.

"In excess of two fifty, you mean!" the male courier corrected, hopping off the door and giving a Nezumi a silly grin before walking around to face Miranda.

"So, if you don't mind me asking," inquired Misty, crawling across the seat and looking out at Zack, "Why are you a courier, and not a famous scientist or a teacher or something?"

Zack glanced over at Misty and shrugged melodramatically. "Must be the A.D.D," he laughed before standing taller on his toes and glancing down on an angle, "That and there's a surplus of mad scientists in Lavender."

Miranda smirked, glancing over her shoulder before doing a double take and smacking Zack's arm. "Hey!" she warned somewhat playfully, "Stop that! Those are taken."

Misty's eyes widened as she followed Zack's gaze down to where her shirt was hanging dangerously low in the front and quickly clasped her hand to her chest, moving her shirt to block his view. "Hey!" she exclaimed, blushing her way through several shades of red.

"Don't worry," chuckled Zack with a dismissive wave of his hand, "Just being a guy."

"You never look at me that way," teased Miranda, giving the service entrance an impatient glance.

"They said they'd be back in ten," explained Zack with a shrug before skipping topics, "And I would look, if you had anything to show!"

"That's it!" laughed Miranda, turning to face her fellow courier with mock severity, "Nezumi! Give Sparkles a taste of 'alacrity'!"

"Nez?" the rattata inquired from his vantage point on the open door, glancing around in confusion.

"Hey," his trainer inquired, her tone becoming serious as the small door beside the loading bay finally opened and a man in Chef's whites came out, "Where's Sparkles, Zack? You didn't sell her for three magic beans again, did you?"

Zack chuckled, shaking his head as the tall, stern looking man approached. "She's around here somewhere," he explained, giving the approaching chef a wide grin that was pointedly ignored, "probably asleep as usual."

"This is MY delivery?" the chef inquired imperiously before Miranda could comment.

"Yes, sir," she replied with a nod, holding out her clip board and a pen, "although some of your order may have been adversely affected by the cold. I noticed a while back that the seals on the doors are frozen shut, so there may be a freon leak."

"There is no culinary adversity that 'I' cannot overcome," the man replied, waving his hand dismissively as a small dark shape stepped out from behind him and rubbed itself affectionately against his leg, "all that matters is that the final preparations can begin."

"Cute, um, pokemon," commented Miranda, glancing down at the dark furred, long eared creature that stared back up at her with gleaming red eyes as she spoke.

"THAT is Salmonella," the chef explained, taking the clipboard from her without giving his pokemon a second glance, "simply ignore her and she won't bother you."

"Cute pokemon?" inquired Misty happily, hopping out of the truck and not noticing the hurt look Nezumi gave her as she scurried up behind Miranda, "What is he?"

"An umbreon," explained Zack, a strange nervousness entering his voice, "It's what happens when eevee's get too close to moonstones at night. Frightful little things. No offence, though, eh!"

The chef glanced over at Zack with a bemused expression as the muffled sound of the truck's rear doors being forced open could be heard from inside the building. "They're really not that bad Mr. Jones," he explained patiently, letting slip a hint of a German accent, "But I can see that Salmonella's presence has scared away your little abra. My apologies. However, once the truck is unloaded, you can be on your way. Good evening, couriers."

Miranda scowled as the man roughly handed the clipboard back, his signature nearly illegible and headed back to the safety of his culinary realm. "Creepy," she commented, watching the umbreon follow along at his master's heels, pausing only to give the group another sinister glance before disappearing through the small doorway.  
"Not cute at all," added Misty disappointedly, standing just behind Miranda and shaking her head as the metal door swung shut and locked securely into place.

"Darkness types are like that," said Zack, his voice sounding distracted, "They give me the creeps in ways ghosts can only dream about."

Misty and Miranda turned in time to see the courier close his eyes and concentrate with all his might. He held his hands out before him, joining them together to form a small platform as beads of sweat formed along his brow.

"What's he doing?" whispered Misty, taking Miranda's arm as she approached from behind.

"He's psychic," Miranda explained as Zack gritted his teeth, "He's just probably arguing with Sparkles again."

After a tense moment, a small flash of light lit up the gathering darkness, and an abra appeared in Zack's open hands. "See," her trainer assured her as she glanced over her shoulder, "It's gone. No need to worry."

Misty smiled and waved politely at the abra, who turned back to her trainer before slouching and snoring loudly. "I just have no luck with cute pokemon today," the girl commented, as Zack chuckled at his now soundly sleeping little bipedal vole.

"It's not you," he assured, "Sparkles sleeps more often than not. The funny thing is, is that she only snores when she's pretending to be asleep. Well, I'd best help you ladies get your stuff together and take off. It's getting dark, and they're almost done in there I think."

"Just about," agreed Miranda, turning to face the spot where the truck seemed to become part of the building as somewhere inside someone dropped something heavy and cursed loudly, "But are you sure you can't stay 'till morning? And there's a festival going on this week you know."

Zack shook his head wearily. "Naw, they want this bucket of bolts down in Saffron by mid-afternoon, so I'd best get my butt in gear. Need any help getting your bikes?"

"Only if you're offering," replied Miranda, a knowing smile crossing her face.

"Hey, I need the practice," chuckled Zack, moving around to the front of the truck where the two mountain bikes had been secured to the carrying rack.

"And you like to show off," Miranda added, taking Misty by the hand and leading her around to the front.

"Ra," agreed Nezumi with a nod, leaping onto Miranda's shoulder as she walked past while Zack put Sparkles down on the hood of the truck.

"Hey, watch it, cheese breath," chuckled Zack, stepping back and holding out his hands dramatically as he concentrated on the several bungi-cords that kept the bikes attached, "Or for my next trick I'll levitated you to the moon."

"Rat, ra," the rattata replied dismissively, causing Zack to chuckle even as several of the cords moved of their own accord and sprang loose.

"You hear what he called me?" the psychic chuckled, closing his eyes to maintain focus.

"You've been called worse," assured Miranda, smiling at Misty's amazed expression as her bicycle levitated off the rack and floated down to the ground, "Besides, he only insults people he likes."

Zack's smirk became a laugh, and Miranda cringed as her bike dropped to the ground before crashing into Misty's with a series of unpleasant clattering sounds.

"Sorry," he said with a smirk as the others cringed.

"Oh, I'll just bill you later," Miranda sighed, moving to fetch their backpacks from the truck.

"Hey, don't you have a bike?" asked Misty as she hurried over to help Zack balance the two fallen bicycles.

"Somewhere," the man replied with a reminiscent smile, "But I haven't hauled it out of storage since Pesto evolved."

"That'd be his pidgeot," explained Miranda, hauling out the two backpacks, "Just be sure to say no if he offers you a ride."

"Hey, he flies better than your Uncle used to drive," chuckled Zack, brushing his hair from his eyes and snatching up the keys Miranda suddenly dangled in front of him, "Which reminds me. You'll never guess who's in town!"

"My Uncle?" guessed Miranda with a mirthful tone, walking over to her bike and pushing back the kickstand.

"Aw! You guessed!" laughed Zack in mock disappointment, "How'd you do that? You must be psychic!"

"Ha, ha," replied Miranda dryly, smiling warily as Zack made his chuckling way into the driver's seat, "And don't forget to do a 'walk around' this time!"

"Yeah, yeah," assured Zack, shaking his head in dismay, "I'll do it clairvoyantly!"

"I'm sure," chuckled Miranda waving as Misty hopped on her own bike and the two began to coast forwards, "Just make sure to head back this way if you get the chance. I'm terrible at carnival games, and I could use a little TK help!"

"Miranda, I'm shocked!" called Zack as the two began to ride off, "That's cheating!"

"And it's not when you read people's minds at the card table?" the courier laughed in reply, glancing over her shoulder and waving farewell, "See you soon, ya brat!"

"Ditto!" called Zack, hopping back out of the truck as Miranda and Misty rounded the corner and headed towards the brightly lit parking lot.

"Wow," commented Misty with a chuckle, "Your friends are almost as amusing as your pokemon."

The woman sighed in dismay, shaking her head as she switched on her bike light. "My Uncle is worse," she replied with a wary smile, "If we meet him, you'll see."

"You have an Uncle?" asked Misty curiously, "You never mentioned you had other family.

Miranda shrugged, her gray eyes looking distant for a moment as a peculiar smile crossed her lips. "He's more of an 'almost' Uncle," she explained, her tone sounding a little sad, "A friend of the family who almost married my Aunt Laurna. But he just took off one day. Sure, I still get birthday cards from him, and he writes from time to time, but I'm not sure my Aunt really ever forgave him for taking off like that."

"He didn't leave her at the alter I hope," commented Misty a little annoyed by the thought.

"No, no," assured Miranda with a laugh, "Actually, he fled the day after she proposed to him. I'm still waiting for an explanation for that one. Especially considering how much they loved each other."

"People do strange things," agreed Misty, standing on her bike pedals and taking a deep breath of the damp, cool air, "But running out on someone like that just isn't right. Are you sure we want to meet this guy? If he runs in fear just because-"

"No, don't misunderstand me," assured Miranda, stopping at the intersection, "Uncle Frank's a really nice guy. He just... screwed up."

Misty nodded slowing to a halt beside Miranda and watching as a single car headed down the main street towards the residential areas. "It still doesn't seem right, though," she commented, meeting Miranda's gaze with a serious look, "I can't imagine what that must be like. To pour your heart out to someone, and even ask them to marry you only to have them leave."

"I sorta can," the courier replied glumly, "My first love left me under rather unpleasant circumstances."

"Oh, Miranda, I, I'm sorry," said Misty sadly, reaching out her hand to touch Miranda's shoulder, "I didn't know..."

"I'm over it," assured Miranda, a smile returning to her lips as she touched Misty's hand, "I was lucky enough to find someone to talk to not long afterwards, and saved myself a pile of therapy bills."

Misty smiled in spite of herself and shook her head in dismay. "I think your friend's sense of humor is rubbing off on you, dear," she chuckled, "That or it's Nezumi's."

From her other shoulder, Miranda's rattata leaned over and blinked at Misty in dismay. "Rata..." he muttered sadly, looking up at his training with a moonie eyed expression.

"It doesn't mean she doesn't still love you, dear," said Miranda in an assuring, maternal tone, reaching up to scratch the little creature under the chin lovingly.

Misty laughed as the rattata made a blissful sound and settled back down on Miranda's shoulder, looking contented as he prepared to take a nap. "And you're way cuter than that icky umbreon," Misty assured, smiling as Nezumi exhaled loudly in relief at the assurance. 

"Just who's pokemon are you?" inquired Miranda rhetorically before turning to Misty with a more serious tone, "So, any thoughts as to where you want to spend the night? I know of this okay hotel on-"

"No, no," interrupted Misty, "I'm sure my sisters won't mind if we stop in. The gym is my home too. Besides, they're probably out right now anyway."

"Prowling the streets in search of fresh victims, no doubt," replied Miranda teasingly and making Misty smile, "But if you're sure they won't mind, I'm fine with it."

"Oh, they'll probably mind," chuckled Misty slyly, "But I think it's about time I started asking for a little payback. If they don't like it, they can run away from home! Besides, I have a few pokemon there I've been meaning to get back. I just hope you don't mind sharing my bed... It's kinda small."

Miranda smiled, taking Misty's hand and shaking her head. "Even a narrow cot is as better than anything a five star hotel can offer, so long as I get to share it with you."

"That's nice," replied Misty, smiling as she felt the surge of emotion slowly travel along all her nerve endings before seeming to sublimate off into the air around her.

"Yeah," agreed Miranda, choosing her words carefully and trying to hide a sudden bemused grin, "That and it gives me an excuse to cuddle you for eight hours"  
"You make it sound like a bad thing," laughed Misty as she prepared to lead the way, "Now come on, if we're lucky we can have dinner be settled in before my sister's get back."

"I just hope they don't remember me too well," chuckled Miranda a little nervously as they headed West, away from the bright lights of what passed for downtown Cerulean, "Otherwise it might be mildly embarrassing..."

"Hey," assured Misty with a sly grin, "At least you're not the one who slept with Violet."

"Poor Gary," laughed Miranda in agreement, pushing down her nervousness, and following Misty homeward...

Chapter IV

The lights were out as the two moved through foyer, into the expansive, domed ceilinged area were people came to be entertained and to challenge for cascade badges. The room itself was quiet except for the gentle lapping of water against the edges of the Olympic sized swimming pool at the center, and the gentle hum from down the hall. This was also where a pale light that barely illuminated the calm water issued forth, marking the site of the enormous aquarium the gym held.

"This place doesn't seem to have changed," commented Misty, her feet padding quietly along the waterproof tiled floor as she led Miranda by the hand through the quiet twilight.

"Home never should," the courier mused, pushing up her glasses and rubbing her wary eyes, "It should always be safe and comforting."

"I wish," sighed Misty, leading Miranda towards the pale light, down a short hall, and into the long, circular corridor that surrounded the expansive aquarium, "but at least I could come here to relax sometimes, when things were bad. I used to just stand her for hours watching the fish and water pokemon."

Miranda nodded, placing her hands upon her lover's shoulders and staring past their mutual reflection into the clear water. "It's very nice," she agreed, looking out at the hundreds of lazily floating sea creatures who moved about the artificial reef, "And your pokemon must like it."

"They do," replied Misty, leaning back as she crossed her arms and laid her hands gently over Miranda's, "Infact, I think that's my starmie over there."

Miranda stood a little taller to see past a large clump of seaweed that swayed in the artificial current. Once her eyes had adjusted to the dim lighting, she could just make out an odd shape half buried in the sand. A large red crystal that glowed with its own inner light, surrounded by a ten-pointed star resting quietly after a long day of doing whatever it was that starmie did in their spare time.

"See your anything else anywhere?" Miranda inquired, keeping her voice low as not to break the spell the quiet dimness seemed to cast over the area.

Misty shook her head, leaning forward and taking a few steps away from Miranda as she searched along the reef for any sign of her other pokemon. "I'm sure he's in here somewhere," she replied in a tone that held a hint of worry.

"Are they nocturnal?" asked Miranda, walking in the opposite direction, her gaze sifting through the swarms of fish for any sign of pokemon.

"No," called Misty, her voice sounding distant.

"The he shouldn't be too hard to find," Miranda whispered to herself, glancing at a sleeping shellder and wondering both why and how it was snoring.

For several minutes, she walked along the arcing corridor, taking careful steps across the thinly carpeted floor, paying more attention to the aquarium than where she was going. After a short time, however, Miranda noticed a large, dark shape descending towards her through the water. Looking up, the woman could just make out a wide circular form with eight long, dark tentacles.

With a smile, she watched it slowly descend, moving carefully through the water and adjusting its angle of descent with subtle movements of its tendrils. "Curious creature," Miranda commented as the octopod angled itself forward and stared out at her with small curious eyes.

"They're beautiful, aren't they?" commented Misty, walking up beside Miranda as the woman stared back at the tentacruel.

"They have a certain appeal," she agreed, giving the creature a mysterious smile that caused it to back away a bit, a look of alarm showing in its gleaming amber eyes, "Is it yours?"

Misty sighed sadly, shaking her head. "No," she replied wistfully, "She belongs to Lily. But she still listens to me though."

Miranda smiled, putting an arm around Misty. "I guess the tentacruel can just tell who better trainer is," she teased as her lover waved to the pokemon.

"You bet," chuckled Misty, finally catching the tentacruel's eye, "Hey! Over here," she called with a wide smile, her eyes full of affection, "I need a favor."

The tentacruel moved closer, extending her tentacles and placing two against the glass even as she gave Miranda a suspicious glance. The woman smiled, shaking her head in amusement as Misty placed her hands against the glass across from where the tendrils touched it. "I'm not sure she likes me," commented Miranda mirthfully, glancing at Misty and catching her eye.

"She's just cautious," the water trainer assured, leaning forward and raising her voice a bit to be heard. "I'm looking for the pokemon I left here!" Misty explained, her mouth close to the glass, "Have you seen them?"

The tentacruel bobbed up and down in an affirmative gesture before extending a tentacle meaningfully. "In there with you?" inquired Misty hopefully, to which the tentacruel replied by detaching from the wall of glass and darting off through the water.

"Come on, she's going to show us," said Misty, grabbing Miranda's hand impulsively and leading the courier off down the hall, suppressing a laugh as she ran.

"I don't think she means in the tank," replied Miranda thoughtfully, tracking the pokemon as they hurried along, "I think she's headed for the entrance."

"I think you're right," replied Misty glumly, slowing as the tentacruel floated before the short exit hall and pointed with a tentacle out into the main gym area, "I guess my sister's took the other one to the pokecenter or something."

"That's alright," assured Miranda, waving goodbye as the tentacruel began a rapid accent when she glanced at her, "He'd be asleep anyway. Which reminds me, should there be this much light in the aquarium?"

"No," responded Misty, warily shaking her head as she looked up at the light source far above them, "the timer must be broken again. I'll just shut it off up stairs."

"Is that where your kitchen is?" asked Miranda, her voice changing to a slightly playful tone, "I'm really hungry after looking at all these yummy fish!"

"Don't you dare!" laughed Misty, making her way back towards the pool, "And yes, our living quarters is on the second floor along with the top of the aquarium. My parents always said that it was so we could keep our personal lives separate from our social responsibilities."

"Makes sense," Miranda agreed as they walked through the near darkness until they came to a locked door with a 'No Entry' sign on it located at the far end of the pool, "That's sorta what my family does as well. My parent's house is attached to the company buildings, but it's kept separate just the same. Oh, and it's near the ocean as well-"

"So I'd like it," finished Misty with a smile as she opened a second door and lead Miranda into a comfortable living room, "Ah! Welcome to my parlor!"

"I thought you hated bugs," commented Miranda with a smile, squinting as Misty hit the wall switch and several lamps illuminated.

"Just making sure you don't have a monopoly on melodrama," Misty assured her, glancing over one shoulder and heading towards a dimly lit hall, "Now just make yourself at home and I'll be right back."

"Sure!" called Miranda, chuckling to herself as she took it all in, "I'll just hog the remote, sit on the couch with no pants, eat everything in the fridge and yell at your kids..."

"You say something?" came Misty's echoing voice from down the hall, followed by several loud clicking sounds.

"Nothing!" laughed Miranda, sitting down on an overstuffed couch and grabbing a handful of cashews from a small crystal bowl on the coffee table, "Just quoting my mom!"

"Nice place, though," she commented, only half paying attention to the sound Misty made as she went from the aquarium room to the kitchen, "And then I'll leave my under-things all over the place, run up a huge long distance bill, and- Oh my!"

As Miranda's eyes scanned the room with it's thick plush carpeting, simulated wooden walls, a shelf filled with books that seemed untouched, and a wall unit filled with family mementos. She then spotted a large a painting that gave her reason to pause.

"Wow," she commented, suddenly feeling guilty as she slid to her feet and stepped out from around the coffee table.

Against one wall was a large fireplace that was probably only used for special occasions, its mantle filled with pictures of Misty and her sisters, but above it was a large, expensive looking painting. A small light fixture set innocuously into the ceiling illuminated the large portrait of a man and woman. They both seemed to be in their late twenties, with clothing that was in fashion at least three decades out of date. The woman had long dark hair, curled loosely and tumbling over the shoulders of her comfortably fitting dress, her emerald green eyes seeming to smile knowingly down at Miranda. The man at her side, who lovingly held her hand, was much taller, with long reddish hair that he tied tightly back, his icy blue eyes almost laughing with amusement as he gave Miranda a toothy, but benevolent grin.

"Those are my parents," said Misty, startling Miranda as she quietly stepped up behind her, "About a year or so after they were married. I'm just glad my sisters haven't done anything strange with it."

"I like it," replied Miranda, letting go of the shiver that crept down her spine and put her arm around Misty, "It's better than some of the stern looking, grim portraits of some of my relatives. They look so happy, so alive. So in love."

"They were," agreed Misty sadly as she leaned closer, "And for a time they shared that love and happiness with us. But when they left, that's when things changed, and this place rapidly began to feel less and less like home."

Miranda turned to her, and carefully wiped a tear from Misty's eye with her index finger. "And eventually you just left," she replied, causing Misty to nod sadly in agreement.

"When I was old enough I told Violet that I couldn't take it anymore," continued Misty, allowing herself to be taken in by Miranda's warm embrace, "I told her that our parents would never approve of the way she ran our household, and that I wasn't going to stand by and be used and mistreated anymore. I said I was leaving and never coming back."

Misty laughed, shaking her head at the thought before glancing up at Miranda with a wary smile. "The things we say as children, eh?" she said rhetorically, making Miranda hold her closer for a moment, "But, as you know, I came back a few years later. And I've visited once or twice since then. I just don't think that I could ever stay for good."

"That's alright," assured Miranda with a small smile, feeling strangely fulfilled as she held her lover in a time of need, "I kinda know what that's like."

"But you visit home more often," added Misty, laying her head upon Miranda's shoulder and looking contemplatively up at the painting of her parents, "Once a year in October."

"Since I caught Wraith," Miranda agreed, giving Misty a soft kiss atop the head, and breathing in the subtle scent of her hair, "But I just use Hallowe'en as an excuse. It still hurts to go back, but I can't just abandon my Mother, even if she has Bob and my Aunt Laurna. But tell my something, my love. Would they approve of me?"

Misty tilted her head back and gave the portrait a serious look. "I'd like to think so," she replied thoughtfully as Miranda turned her gaze towards the couple as well, "They were very easy going people. That's probably why my sisters became such brats, though. But what about your parents? What would your Father have thought of me? And what does your Mother think of me?"

Miranda chuckled, shaking her head slowly as Misty gave her a questioning look. "My Mother has yet to voice a strong opinion on the topic. But she never completely formulates and opinion of someone until she meets them face to face. So far we have her approval, though. So that's something."

"And as for my Father," said Miranda, sighing heavily and smiling sadly as she turned back to Misty and caught her gaze, "He'd say that if can you make me happy, then you're a welcome addition to the family."

Misty smiled, feeling a bit embarrassed as Miranda leaned closer and gave her a small kiss. "And what about your stepfather?" she inquired with a hint of amusement.

"He thinks you're cute," chuckled Miranda, giving another quick kiss and trying not to laugh.

"That must drive your Mom crazy," Misty laughed in reply, leaning back and guiding Miranda back towards the couch.

"Naw, Mom's a lot more easy going than she let's on," Miranda replied with a mischievous smile, "She only pretends to act like a real mom. She's actually not even half as serious as people think she is. But I'm sure she'll just love you to pieces!"

"Ow! That could be painful!" laughed Misty, letting herself fall backwards, pulling Miranda down awkwardly over the arm of the couch and laughing as her lover struggled to regain equilibrium.

"So's this," agreed Miranda with a laugh before rearranged herself so that she was straddling Misty, who's legs were bent over the arm of the couch.

"Sorry," Misty chuckled, reaching up to push Miranda's glasses back up her nose as they threatened to slid off, "You just bring this out in me."

"And you bring out my laughter," her lover added, giving Misty yet another gentle kiss, "And for that, I thank you. By the way, are you cooking something?"

"Oh crap!" Misty exclaimed, squirming out from beneath Miranda before hopping off the couch and pulling her shirt back down, "I almost forgot!"

"I thought I was the one who was no good in the kitchen!" laughed Miranda, leaning on the back of the couch, watching Misty as she fled into the gloom.

"It's your curse rubbing off on me!" replied Misty, chuckling before cursing loudly and making a bit of a commotion in the kitchen.

"Need any help?" inquired Miranda with concern as the clattering of dishes issued forth, followed by the sound of a glass breaking.

"No, I'm fine," assured Misty, her voice seeming unconvinced, "I traveled with an unofficial chef for nearly five years remember. I had time to learn a trick or two!"

"Unofficial?" inquired Miranda with amusement as Misty staggered from the kitchen with a huge platter held at least one quietly sizzling dish.

Misty nodded as she came around the couch and set the platter down on the coffee table. "Brock was a natural at cooking," she explained, taking a seat next to Miranda and turning to face her, "But pokemon were his obsession, so to my knowledge he never went for his red seal and became a real chef. Just his breeder license."

"He chose to bring new pokemon into the world instead of cooking them, I guess," chuckled Miranda, glancing at the fajitas Misty had thrown together with whatever she could find in the kitchen, "But it looks like you weren't wasting your time with him."

"Yeah, only with Ash," agreed Misty, glancing distantly at the food, "But I hope you like it."

Miranda took Misty's hand and held it close to her lips, causing her to glance back and smile a little at the mischief she saw in her lover's cloudy gray eyes. "Then before I taste that which you have wrought, my love," replied Miranda melodramatically before giving Misty's knuckles a gentle kiss, "I thank you for this delicious meal, so unlike any I've had before."

"I'll call the hospital and tell them to expect two cases of salmonella," chuckled Misty, unable to take the gesture seriously.

"You know me too well," said Miranda with a smile, kissing Misty on the cheek before reaching out and carefully picking up one of the strips of meat that lay upon the pile of still steaming vegetables.

"I found it in the back of the fridge," said Misty, smiling at Miranda's concerned look, and laughing at the horrified expression the woman wore as she took a small, all too careful bite.

"Hey, not bad!" replied Miranda with genuine appreciation; popping the rest into her mouth and quickly eating before speaking again. "Spearow, right?"

Misty nodded. "One of the only pokemon I don't mind eating," she agreed with a touch of malice, "Those things are just vicious!"

"So much for no pokemon being innately malevolent," Miranda chuckled, grabbing a plate and putting together and proper fajita, "Although I'd argue that that umbreon we saw tonight wasn't exactly Miss Congeniality."

"The glowing red eyes threw me off," agreed Misty with a shudder, reaching for a plate as well, only to have Miranda hand her fajita one she'd been putting together, "Thanks."

"Hey, you made it," replied Miranda with a loving smile as she went about fixing one for herself, "And anyway, I wouldn't let red eyes throw me off if I were you. Bulbasaurs have red eyes."

"Yeah, that's true," agreed Misty as Miranda poked at the guacamole skeptically, "But bulbasaurs are cute. And they make flowers grow and stuff."

Miranda chuckled at the thought. "Cute?" she inquired, giving Misty an amused look.

"Mmm, hm!" assured Misty, nodding with a mouthful of fajita.

"Well, I have heard that they're quite loyal, I can't argue with that," pondered Miranda, taking a bite of her food and chewing thoughtfully as Misty swallowed hard and reiterated her statement.

"In a strange, lizard with a flower growing out of its back kinda way," she said thoughtfully before glancing mysteriously at her food, holding the fajita to her ear and whispering quietly out of the corner of her mouth, "Bulbasaur!" causing Miranda to cover her mouth laughing.

"Last I checked, their on the 'No' list in cerulean as far as eating goes," she replied with a smile as Misty gave her fajita an alarmed look and took another bite, "Something about 'sufficient sentience' or something?"

Misty nodded as she finished chewing and swallowed. "Yes," she agreed, suddenly remembering she'd forgotten to bring them anything to drink, "It's only legal to consume certain types of pokemon in most major cities. Even then they usually have to be only up to a certain evolution and can only be hunted for food at certain times of the year."

"You planning on becoming a chef, dear?" inquired Miranda.

"No," laughed Misty in amusement, shaking her head and looking reminiscent, "But as I said, Brock knew a lot about pokemon, and he occasionally talked about stuff like that. Although on the budget we had our meals were usually rather uninteresting."

"Now you have a decent budget, but you lack a descent cook," chuckled Miranda.

"That's true," agreed Misty, finishing her fajita and getting up to get a drink, "But don't make your credit card smoke on my account.

"Nothing's too good for you, my dear," replied Miranda, leaning back her head back over the couch and looking at Misty with an upside down view.

"There you go spoiling me again," her lover replied in amusement, giving Miranda a quick kiss before heading down the hall once again, "I just hope you don't mind my bedroom."

"Why would I?" asked Miranda, settling back down.

"I have a really small bed," responded Misty, leaning out of the kitchen, "But at least I don't have to share a room with Daisy since Violet claimed our parent's room."

"That's okay," assured Miranda, "Even the most humble of cots would be the lap of luxury were I to spend the night there with you in my arms. Although I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable sleeping in my parent's room. It would just feel... Wrong somehow..."

"Superstitious?" Misty teased, ducking back into the kitchen.

"Hey!" laughed Miranda, "I'm from Lavender Town! What do you expect...!"

Chapter V

Miranda awoke the next day by the method she liked the least; the blinding morning sun shining directly into her eyes making it impossible to stay in bed. With a grumble she lowered her head in an attempt to go back to sleep, only to hear a loud -thunk!- as her forehead knocked against something at least as hard as it was.

With a quiet curse the courier opened her eyes and suddenly remembered where she was. Before her was Misty, until seconds before dozing contentedly in her arms only to be awaked by an unexpected collision.

"Oh, well good morning to you too," commented Misty wryly, rubbing her forehead and opening one eye.

"Sorry," replied Miranda, brushing her lover's hair out of her eye and kissing her on the forehead, "I don't usually don't hurt people to wake them up."

"That's alright," assured Misty, snuggling closer and closing her eyes again, "We only have a few minutes left any way."

"Oh?" inquired Miranda, her arms giving Misty a gentle hug to alleviate her sudden need to do so.

Misty nodded, opening her eyes again as she listened to the quiet sounds coming from the rest of the building. "Listen," she whispered as the sound of arguing voices carried from down the hall and through the door to Misty's bedroom, "It's like that every morning."

For several minutes, the two lied quietly, listening to the sounds of the three sisters arguing over some trivial matter. Violet's voice was easiest to make out, not necessarily being the loudest, but certainly the most authoritative. The argument seemed to be going in her favor, which was no surprise to Misty, as the eldest of the sisters was also the most manipulative. Lily seemed to be the one doing most of the arguing, however, being Violet's main rival and contender for 'head of the family'. Daisy, though, was the least vocal of the terrible trio, seeming to only interject when things got too out of hand or when she really had something important to say.

"They'll stop when we go out there," commented Misty, stretching out but feeling no actual desire to get out of bed.

"I know," said Miranda with a nod, feeling a touch guilty as she realized that the three sisters were arguing about who'd left a mess in the kitchen the night before.

"We might as well get this over with then," Misty grumbled before noticing the look that crossed her lover's face, "Hey, what's wrong?"

Miranda shrugged, her gaze a little distant. "This is what I've always hated about staying at other people's places," she explained with a weak smile, her glaze moving to catch Misty's, "Every morning it seems like their arguing about something I did."

"No, it's alright," assured Misty, brushing Miranda's bangs out of her eyes, "They're always this way, and we might as well put a stop to it right now."

"As you wish," agreed Miranda with a smile, kissing Misty lightly on the nose before reluctantly tossing back the blankets and shivering against the sudden chill.

"Say, do you think they'll remember you?" asked Misty with an amused grin as she rifled through the pile of clothing the two had left beside the bed.

"Only one way to find out," chuckled Miranda, reaching onto the night stand for her glasses, "If not, I'll just as Violet how Gary's doing."

"Do it anyway," laughed Misty, standing up to get dressed, "But seriously, let's hurry. I'd just like to get this over with..."

"Misty!" came the ringing chorus of happy voices that oozed all the insincerity of a scripted greeting as the two stepped into the living room.

"Oh, like we're sooo happy that you're awake!" commented Violet, gliding across the room with open arms, "Welcome home!"

"Hey," inquired Lily, looking over her sister's shoulder, "Who's your friend?"

"You guys remember Miranda, don't you?" asked Misty, accepting a sisterly hug that was almost choreographed in it's pretentiousness.

"Hey, like I remember you," laughed Daisy, getting out of the comfortable chair she'd taken refuge in, "Like your dratini totally annihilated my shellder last time you were here for a badge battle!"

Miranda smiled, bowing her head to hide her amusement. "Yes," she said softly, "Just try using an ice attack next time, okay?"

"Oh!" exclaimed Violet, here eyes gleaming darkly as she turned to face the courier, "You were that girl who came here with that guy from Pallet... What was his name again, Lily?"

"I- I'm sure I can't remember," stammered her sister, her face turning almost as red as her hair.

Violet smirked and held out her hand. "Pleased to meet you again," she said with a smile that almost seemed predatory, showing far more teeth than was necessary, "Sorry about us being a little disorganized today, but as always our thoughtless little sister just dropped in unexpectedly."

"Like, yeah," added Lily as Misty glared at the both of them and Miranda gritted her teeth, not wanted to seem like an ungracious guest, "And she didn't even tell us she was bringing a guest!"

"Stop it!" exclaimed Misty angrily; clenching her fists as she almost growled out her words, "I absolutely hate it when you talk about me like I'm not even in the room!"

"Like, take a chill pill, little sister," commented Lily, seemingly offended even as Miranda slipped her fingers through Misty's and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

"Yeah," added Daisy, shaking her head in mock disbelief, "We were just trying to make your guest feel totally welcome."

"Then I thank you all for your hospitality," said Miranda, biting back the sudden urge to put the three spoilt brats in their place, and keeping her voice surprisingly level, "But if you'd like, I'm sure we could find other accommodations."

"Oh! No, no, no!" assured Violet with a laugh, waving her hands before her enthusiastically, "Please feel free to stay as long as you want. I'm sure we can find an extra cot in storage for you to sleep on in the future, though. I'm sure Misty's floor was extremely uncomfortable-"

"Actually," interrupted Misty, a wide grin crossing her face as she saw the expressions on her siblings faces change subtly, "We simply shared my bed. It's a little cramped, but we're used to sleeping fairly close together. Now then, I'd like to see my pokemon if you don't mind."

Miranda clenched her teeth and tightened her facial muscles to keep from laughing as she glanced at Misty. 'Such a brave, wonderful person she is,' thought the courier as a feeling of pride filtered through her amusement, 'How can I not lover you?'

"Hold on," assured Daisy, collecting her wits first and taking the opportunity to leave the room, heading down the hall, "I'll just go fetch your starmie from the aquarium!"

"So you're both become very close friends then?" inquired Violet, turning around and walking towards the door to the gym area below to hide her expression.

"Very close," assured Misty, grinning to hide her embarrassment, but still enjoying the effect it was having on her sibling, "Miranda's really turned my life around."

"I see," commented Lily, picking up a tall glass from an end table and taking a long sip as Misty took hold of Miranda's arm and leaned against her happily, "Well, like congratulations then."

"Yes," added the eldest of the Cerulean sisters, her voice wavering ever so slightly as she slid open the door, pausing at the threshold, "Congratulations..."

"Here we go!" exclaimed Daisy, bounding back into the living room wielding a dripping wet pokeball, "One starmie, as promised!"

"Oh good!" laughed Misty, releasing Miranda and grabbing the pokeball, practically yanking her sister's hand off in the process. "Oh! I've missed you sooo much!" the trainer told the pokemon within as she held it against her cheek and smiled contentedly, "But I'll never leave you again, I promise!"

"Like, it's just an overgrown starfish," sneered Violet before taking the opportunity to stomp off down the stairs.

"Strange," commented Miranda to the now empty doorway, "I thought you guys liked water-types."

"Oh, we do," assured Lily, chuckling nervously, "It's just that Misty's starmie won't really listen to anyone but her."

"Can you blame her?" chuckled Misty, cutting short her happy reunion as her other two siblings made their way to the door.

"I can't," assured Miranda, taking Misty's hand again and giving it a squeeze.

"You're only saying that because you're in love with me," chuckled Misty, raising their joined hands to her lips and giving Miranda's a fingers a quick kiss before leading her from the room, "Now come on, I want you to meet my two long lost pokemon."

At Misty's command, the pokeball sprang open and her starmie materialized within the calm waters of the Olympic sized swimming pool next to her overjoyed looking horsea. "Miss me, guys?" the trainer laughed, leaning forward and smiling happily at the pokemon.

"Is there any doubt?" inquired Miranda in amusement as the two water-types called out their agreement.

"I'm so glad you did, even if I missed you more," said Misty with smile she couldn't suppress before motioning to Miranda, "But I think it's time you two meet my friend here."

"Hi," the courier replied simply, smiling a little as she gave a short wave, "I'm Miranda, but I think you'd like my friend Umi more."

"Hey, good point," chuckled Misty as Miranda held out a pokeball that was black on top and gray on the bottom and activated the release mechanism, "Hey wait! That's not-!"

There was a surprised sound from the cloud of dark smoke that materialized from the ball, and a shriek of panic from Misty's horsea as Wraith collected himself and stared down at the water curiously. "Gaaa?" he inquired, swiveling to face Miranda with a questioning look.

"Oops! Sorry," apologized Miranda with a hint of amusement at the way Misty's sisters suddenly went into a controlled panic, "I wasn't paying attention..."

The courier held out the ball once more, intent on returning the ghost, not noticing the rather odd noise the nearly terrified horsea made before a blob of something dark wet and sticky flew in Wraith's direction.

"Gassst!" the ghost exclaimed in alarm, throwing up a shall telekinetic barrier as the blast hit, harmlessly deflecting most of the horsea's ink-jet attack but sending one blob of oily, black ooze sailing towards his trainer.

"Ahh!" exclaimed Miranda, dropping her pokeball in surprise as she found a rather large, and particularly cold wet stain form on her shirt.

"Miranda!" yelped Misty, turning to help, but pausing as she saw how little damage had been done, instead turning bravely towards the gastly. "You!" she scolded, collecting all her courage to chastise the little ghost, "You're supposed to protect your trainer, not humiliate her!"

"Wra..." pouted Wraith, looking downcast and fading into invisibility even as he floated over to his trainer and nuzzled her shoulder.

"It's okay," laughed Miranda as Misty's sisters hurried over, "I'm fine. I've had worse things happen to my clothing."

"I'm, like, sure we can lend you something to replace it," offered Lily, suddenly taking a step back as Miranda reached out with her hand and petted something that didn't appear to be there.

"And you can take a quick bath before that stuff stains your skin," added Violet a little too hastily as Miranda whispered a few reassuring words to her saddened, invisible gastly.

"Thanks," the woman replied glancing at Misty, "I take it you'd like to bond for a while?"

Her lover nodded with an amused smile. "Yeah, and I'd like to borrow Umi too if I could," she replied, kneeling down to pet her horsea reassuringly, "But I'll join you next time."

Miranda chuckled quietly and nodded before returning Wraith and actually looking carefully at the second pokeball with its blue and white colour combination. "Alright, Umi," she called as the dratini's ball snapped open and sent out its curious luminescence, "time to make some new friends!"

The serpent appeared a short distance above the water, but dove in happily without missing a beat. A moment later she popped her head out near the edge of the pool and looked up at Miranda imploringly. "Dra?" inquired Umi hopefully.

"No, sorry, dear," her trainer replied with a sad smile, "Maybe next time. But I'm sure Misty'll go swimming with you while I'm gone." "Now then," asked Miranda, turning towards Violet, you said I could take a quick bath?"

"Ah yes, this way," the woman explained with a conniving glance in Misty's direction, "I'll arrange something to put on when she's done, like okay?"

"Have fun," commented Misty giving a small, sad wave as Miranda was lead off, causing her to wonder what horrors awaited her, "We'll miss you!"

"If I'm not back in an day, you can keep Umi," the courier chuckled as Misty laughed at the comment and the little dragon let out a long sad sound as her trainer followed Violet up the long flight of stairs...

The room illuminated automatically as Miranda slid the door open and entered, filling the room with soft light. "Gee," she commented, noticing not only the raised dais upon which the sunken bathtub rested, but also the expansive dressing table, crowded with every conceivable beauty product on the planet, and equipped with a large mirror surrounded by clear round light bulbs, "They really take this stuff seriously!"

With a chuckle, Miranda walked up the tiled steps to where the bathtub dwelt. It seemed deep enough to fully submerse herself in, and spacious enough to hold at least another person comfortably. The waterspout was designed in the shape of a seadra, the two faucets on either side turning easily to expel a combination of hot and cold water into the tub.

"I should have known," the woman commented with a smile as her the water ran between her fingers, the temperature near perfect, "In a city obsessed with water, you can always bathe comfortably."

Miranda shook her hand dry and walked to the dressing table, noticing the small bench that had been pushed underneath it. "Well, that'll take a while," she commented to her reflection, reaching under to pull out the padded bench and sat herself in front of the mirror, "Might as well take my time."

With a gentle push against the far wall with her feet, Miranda moved the seat back a bit further and spun around to face the bath as she disrobed. "I really should be more careful," she muttered to herself, holding out the front of her shirt and shaking her head at the ink stain, "I just hope Umi's okay out there."

After removing her shirt, Miranda hung it on a small hook on the side of the dressing table to dry and went about detaching the three pokeballs from her belt. "But what to do with you two trouble makers?" she inquired in a maternal tone before setting the two occupied and one empty ball down on the table behind her, "Naw, unleashing Wraith into their computer system and Nezumi into their kitchen would be mean."

She then stood up and undid her pants so that they could fall to the floor at her feet, before undoing her necklace and setting it carefully on the counter beside the pokeballs. "Ah, freedom," chuckled Miranda, stretching out her arms, rotating her shoulder muscles before pulling down her undergarments and taking a good look at what the not-so sensational Cerulean Sisters considered bathroom necessities.

"'Serene Seel Bubble Bath'," read Miranda aloud as she picked up the first bottle she found, "I guess that's not such a bad idea. Oh, and 'Happy Jynx Hair Care'? Um, maybe not."

Miranda picked up the second bottle and shook her head in dismay. "I'm glad Lavender Town isn't this bad," she commented, finally settling on a bottle of shampoo that didn't have a cheesy marketing ploy, "I can see it now, 'Gengar Toothpaste! Keeps your teeth as white as a corpse, or your money back! Oh well..."

The courier turned her attention back to the filling bathtub and was pleased to find it nearly done, the waterspout doing its job rather efficiently. So, with only a moment's hesitation, she uncorked the bottle of bubble bath and moved to drop in a small amount. As promised on the label, thick suds immediately erupted from the churning waters, and by the time the tub was nearly full, Miranda began to wonder if she'd over done it.

"Good enough," she commented, shutting off the water and stepping carefully into the pleasantly warm water, prepared to enjoy the first real bath she'd had in weeks.

As she settled in, the warm water already taking its soothing toll on her wary muscles and the suds making pleasant little crackling/popping noises, Miranda closed her eyes and sighed contentedly. "Showers just can't compare to this," the courier whispered to herself, casually slipping off her glasses and putting them on the edge of the tub before holding her breath and sliding beneath the calm waters.

Once submerged, the ambient sounds of the Cerulean City Gym banished from her ears, and only the warm caress of the gently moving water filled her senses. Within seconds Miranda felt all her tension drift away. With a small smile, she folded her legs into a sitting position, allowing herself to float to the surface once she neared the limit of her stamina.

The cooler air that touched her face felt like a welcome morning kiss as she broke the thin membrane of water-tension, and the fresh oxygen that filled her lungs seemed sweet. "Misty," she whispered absently, feeling a subtle longing lurking quietly in the back of her mind, "I love you..."

Leaning her head back against gently curved rim of the tub, Miranda let her mind wander. With a small sigh of contentment, she lifted her knees once more, but not enough for them to leave the water's warm comfort.

'Mmm, this is nice,' the woman thought wistfully, brushing her dark wet hair over her ears with both hands before slowly dragging her fingers downward, gently caressing the tension from her neck.

In her mind, Miranda imagined the touch was Misty's. Her lover's hands slowly weaving their way downward, pausing only to gently cup her breasts and brush her fingers teasingly across Miranda's nipples.

"Like that..." she breathed, taking both nipples between her fingers and imagining Misty's pretty face leaning forward to tease Miranda with little kisses as she ran her fingers downward, gently tugging at them while whispering words of adoration.

Miranda let out a long slow breath; her head tilting to one side as she brought her hands down lower, giving in to her body's sudden need. "Maybe I should save this passion for the real you," Miranda chuckled quietly, biting her lip as her fingers slid lower "Or maybe not..."

The courier held her breath as her fingertips teased her labia before both hands moved out to trace the length of her thighs, causing Miranda to shiver despite the warmth of the water. Miranda's inner thighs had always been a pleasurable weakness when caressed in the correct manner, and now she wished it were her lover's touch upon them, not her own.

"I need you, dearest," said Miranda so quietly she barely even heard her own words, and as she brought a hand up to her breast to tease herself further, Miranda conjured an image in her mind of her beloved.

She imagined a spacious room, whose far off walls and ceiling were enshrouded by both shadows and veils of coloured silk. The lighting was dim, provided candles whose flames somehow failed to burn anything but the wax, and cast strange shadows about the expansive room. The shadows themselves seemed to flit about, impatient for what was to come, intent on quietly observing.

From somewhere, hidden behind thin walls whose colours ranged through all the spectrums of blue and purple, music played. It was soft, crossing Celtic and classical in a unity so perfect it rivaled the love Misty and Miranda felt for each other.

As Miranda approached the center of the room, the silken veils parted to allow her passage, obeying her unspoken command as she stepped barefoot across the marble floor that, strewn with rose petals.

The courier closed her eyes, breathing in the sweet scent of the dying petals, and feeling the soft caress of the loose fitting robes she wore. The light material could have been silk, yet it clung to her more like solidified ephemera as she moved, trailing out behind the woman with every step, revealing the length of Miranda's legs as she walked.

When at last she had reached her destination Miranda paused, spreading her arms wide and leaning her head back with a contented smile. "All this is for your benefit, my dearest love," Miranda said aloud, leaning her head forward and opening her eyes as she heard the quiet sound of Misty's breathing. What she then saw, made Miranda shiver, and almost laugh out loud as a way to release the sudden desire that flooded her senses even as the music reached a minor crescendo.

Misty stood with her back to Miranda, her arms to her sides, her head held high and her orangish hair tied up, revealing her slender, ever so tempting neck. The only garment that she wore, however, was a long, loosely fitting robe of white silk that was so thin Miranda could just make out tantalizing, yet shadowy glimpses of Misty's body beneath.

"Don't be afraid," Miranda whispered, walking up behind Misty and speaking directly into her ear, "I love you far too much to ever hurt you."

The girl nodded slowly, but was otherwise silent. Her only sounds the quiet moan she let out as Miranda's hands rested upon her strong shoulders for a moment before running down her back, the courier's skilled fingers seeking out the tension in Misty's muscles. As her lover leaned back in response to Miranda's touch, her hands moving slowly up and down her back, she rested her head against Miranda's chest and smiled up at her.

"I love you," sighed Misty as Miranda's hands moved downward, taking her firm bottom in both hands and squeezing gently, causing Misty's eyes to flutter shut, and her voice to falter.

"I know," Miranda soothed, bowing her head to kiss Misty upon the forehead with as much subtle passion as she could muster, "and I hope to one day find all the right words to tell you how much I love you in return. But for now, just relax. I have so much to show you..."

Misty smiled, sighing contentedly as she leaned her head forward to hide her sudden blush, giving Miranda ample opportunity to kiss the back of her neck, and run her hands up over the swell of Misty's hips, across her stomach, until finally reaching the gentle rise of her lover's breasts.

Although soft silk lay in a thin barrier between Miranda's hands and her lover's skin, the woman didn't mind. The gentle rustle of the fabric was just noticeable on the edge of her hearing, but the firm, but her tactile sense was very much in tune with the toned curves of Misty's body beneath her fingers. The way Misty caught her breath as her head leaned to one side adding yet another inviting aspect to the girl's allure as Miranda traced a line of slow kisses across her neck, up to her ear.

"What good are my hands?" whispered Miranda rhetorically in the tone she used for quiet recital as her fingers gently caressed Misty's breasts through the translucent fabric, "If cannot hold you safe in my arms?"

Misty shivered, clenching her fists unconsciously as Miranda ran the tip of her tongue with excruciating slowness along the curve of her lover's earlobe. "And what use do my lips serve?" she questioned, giving Misty's hardening nipples a gentle squeeze before running her hands up to her shoulders and back down her arms, "If I can never know the joy of your kisses?"

"Then just hold, my dearest love," came Misty's whispered reply as Miranda's fingers slipped through her own, carefully lifting Misty's arms above her head, "Let not the past besiege the walls of our passion, let no other come between us."

Miranda could feel Misty shiver as she reached past the girl's hands and took hold of two conveniently dangling lengths of silk. One was of a deep blue colour, the other simply of lavender.

"And taste my love upon your lips whenever you so desire," continued Misty, her soft, beautiful voice quavering slightly as Miranda loosely bound her wrists with the silken binds, "Trace them across my skin, use them to provoke my desire, use them to taste the sweet ambrosia of my passion. Just always be my dearest Miri..."

"Always," promised Miranda, running her hands back down Misty's arms, which were now held out at comfortable angles, making her only seem helpless as Miranda's fingers pushed the sleeves of Misty's garment down her arms to her shoulders.

Miranda then took a step back, smiling at her handiwork with a touch of amusement as she pulled a length of white silk from within her own flowing robes and held it at its ends. "You can easily break free," the woman's voice echoed through Misty's mind as the length of white silk came from behind and covered her eyes, "Those wonderful, soft hands of yours could easily slip free of these loose knots I've bound your wrists with."

"Why would I want to escape your love?" replied Misty, her voice a sounding a little sad at the prospect before becoming a coy chuckle as she said, "When I can finally know what it's like to have someone whose love comes without condition?"

Miranda smiled as she tied the silken blindfold loosely behind her lover's head, covering Misty's eyes before playfully running her fingernails the girl's back as she followed them with kisses. Finally, though, as Miranda's fingers moved across the gentle rise of Misty's bottom, she knelt down behind her lover, and let her hands drop the rest of the way down.

"Because of my past? Because of yours?" answered Miranda, trying to keep her tone serious, but not succeeding as her fingers touched Misty's calves causing her to gasp, Misty's lithe body shivering at the touch, "Because you have dreams to chase down? And I have a job to do?"

Misty had to catch her breath as Miranda's hands pushed the fabric of her gown up as they slowly, appreciatively moved up her legs. "Never," promised Misty, her fingers wrapping around the lengths of silk that so loosely bound her wrists and pulling at them to no avail, "If I were to loose you, who would I have to hold me on the coldest nights? Who would I have to share the joy of my victories with? Who would I have to make love with...?"

Miranda closed her eyes, sighing contentedly as she listened to her beloved's words. All the while her hands traveled higher, occasionally sliding back down over the wonderfully toned muscles of Misty's calves before moving higher, and soliciting a small gasping moan.

"No one who would care for you as deeply as I," Miranda agreed, sliding her hands around the front of Misty's thighs, gently caressing the smooth skin as she maneuvered her head underneath the dangling robe, "And besides. No one else who knows just how to touch you."

Misty's reply was stifled by the sudden chill that ran up her spine. Miranda's lips touched her inner thigh, kissing her playfully before moving across to the other. The woman then glanced up and smiled as she moved slowly upward towards Misty's womanhood.

"I want you so much that nothing else has meaning," added Miranda, pausing to teasingly run the tip of her tongue a short distance up Misty's inner thigh, "I feel as though I've been poisoned by my desire for you, and the only cure is the taste of your sweet ambrosia."

Her lover inhaled sharply as Miranda's hands slid up her thighs, carrying the hem of the thin robe ever higher, until the courier's fingers slid appreciatively across the gentle rising curve of Misty's bottom. With little gasps of anticipation, followed small moans of longing, Misty staggered slightly, standing with her legs slightly apart as she felt the tip of Miranda's tongue touch her womanhood, tasting Misty's infinite desire.

As Miranda's tongue ran slowly between Misty's labia, she push her bottom out invitingly, trying to position herself to Miranda both more room to maneuver, and a better view. In response, it was all that Miranda could do to not just slide her tongue deeper and simply suckle forth the moisture that formed in response to her touch. The sounds Misty was making, combined with her own desire causing Miranda's body to quiver as she slowly lapped at Misty's labia, patiently teasing her beloved to orgasm.

"P-please," came Misty's breathless response as Miranda switched to using the flat of her tongue, still not penetrating, nor going near her lover's clit which was surely yearning to be touched, "Don't tease me so."

"Am I teasing you, my love?" responded Miranda, unable to banish the smile from her lips as she leisurely drew her tongue back and gave Misty's firm bottom an appraising squeeze, "I could always stop, and leave you alone if you'd like."

"Don't you dare-!" gasped out Misty, both laughing and shouting out her joy at the same time as Miranda's tongue finally slid inside her, and the courier's lips covering her labia.

Misty threw her head back, crying out in her elation. The soft, warm caress of Miranda's tongue upon her inner folds causing her whole body to convulse as she neared orgasm. She could feel the knowing touch of Miranda's hands, now moving slowly up her back, pushing gently against her muscles in just the right places to relieve the tension she herself was causing. Misty could hear the quiet, approving sounds Miranda made as the woman went about her work, relentlessly suckling against Misty's labia as her tongue moved about inside her.

Finally, as Misty felt as though she could take no more, she felt Miranda pull away and nearly cried as the cooler air touched her where once there had only been her lover's warmth.

"Wha-?" stammered Misty, only to hear Miranda's quiet chuckle, and a low rustling as the silken garment she wore came magically apart, falling from her shoulders and pooling at her feet in a pile of tattered silk as Miranda stood and walked around to the front.

"We're not finished yet, my love," came the sound of the courier's voice, coupled with the quiet licking of her lips followed by Miranda's arms around Misty and a passionate kiss.

Miranda had slipped her own garment off, and slid her now bare arms around Misty's naked body before moving in close to kiss her. The girl's lips quivered as they touched, but were quite more than willing. Miranda shivered unconsciously as she hugged Misty tightly, tilting her head to one side and sliding her tongue past Misty's slightly parted lips.

Again Miranda was delighted to find her lover so willing to indulge her, yet she knew that the poor girl needed release. The brewing orgasm had been brought to an end all too soon, but Miranda's need to kiss her lover had been too great. "I just love you so much," she whispered, pulling away from the equally breathless Misty, smiling at her lover's appearance. Though she was near helplessly bound, unable to see, there still the delightful self-confidence and complete trust in Miranda that made the woman fall in love with Misty all over again.

Miranda then had to smile as Misty leaned her head forward, playfully nipping at the air between them as though to capture Miranda's kisses. "You, you can't leave me yet," replied Misty, an equally playful smile crossing her face even as her voice sounded pleading, "I still need you..."

"And I shall always need you, my love" assured Miranda, stepping back as she slid her hands around to the front where they came to rest just under the pleasant handfuls Misty's breasts, "Just be patient for a moment longer."

Misty nodded slowly, quietly accepting one final kiss upon the lips before Miranda traced a line of them down her neck, every so often giving the her sensitive skin a gentle nibble. All the while, Miranda's hands moved upward, her fingers fanning out to cup the gentle rise of Misty's breasts before caressing them lovingly.

"I love you," Miranda whispered again, just loud enough for Misty to hear over the quiet music as she kissed her way back down to the same level as her hands.

Misty's only reply was a nod as she began breathing though her mouth, reaching out with one leg in a desperate attempt to touch Miranda in the way her hands longed to, as Miranda's hands slid across Misty's soft skin, around to her back as she pushed her bosom forward invitingly. And without a second thought, Miranda gladly accepted the offer.

Before her Misty's breasts seemed to be longing for her touch, even as her caressing fingers played across the sensitive skin. And as Miranda moved her hands aside, she could see how Misty's hardened nipples seemed to ache to be suckled.

As her hands traced their way across her lover's skin and her fingers scratched lightly down Misty's back, Miranda's slow, patient tongue made careful circles around each of the girl's nipples in turn before she gave one breast a playful kiss, and slowly brought a portion of it into her mouth.

Misty reacted with a visible shiver as she bit her lip her head fell to one side as her mind swam so close to compete euphoria. As Miranda's tongue played across the captured portion of her breast, flicking her nipple playfully before cautious teeth gave it a gentle nibble, Misty released her grip on her binds, letting herself hang limply. She then sighed deeply, leaning into Miranda who gladly supported her weight, kissing her way to the other breast and repeating the process before slowly sliding downwards.

"And now to finish what I started," promised Miranda, crouching down and dragging her parted lips across Misty's stomach as her fingers pressed against the girl's back, tracing long lines down to her bottom once again.

"Please don't tease me," replied Misty dreamily, smiling as Miranda's hands slid playfully across her bottom before behind Misty's legs and lifting them off the ground.

Misty gasped, half expecting the silken cords to snap, but they gave no protest, even as her thighs were placed comfortably upon Miranda's shoulders, and the courier supported her weight without a problem.

"I shall not, my love," Miranda assured, kissing one of Misty's inner thighs passionately, and causing her lover's fingers to curl unconsciously as her body reacted to what was to come, "But I will take my time."

"Please hurry," Misty panted, gritting her teeth against the sensation that was building up inside of her as she leaned back, smiling, as she pulled against the unbreakable silken binds and found that they didn't so much as tighten against her wrists.

"You cannot rush an artist," teased Miranda, her hands pushing against Misty's bottom so that her face was closer to her goal, "And patience is half a virtue."

As she ran her tongue across Misty's inner thigh, bringing it tantalizingly close to her lover's womanhood, Misty's legs pushed against Miranda's ears, drowning out most of the outside world. All that Miranda's could hear as her tongue slid up the line between Misty's labia were the muffled sounds her beloved's gasps and little exclamations, coupled with the faint sound of her pulse.

Trapped as she was, Miranda couldn't help smile inwardly at the irony her imagination had woven. Both lovers trapped by the other, both unwilling to do the one thing that would set them both free. But it was a comforting feeling, knowing that neither would willingly let the other go.

Finally, though, as she imagined licking Misty's clit in the quick, deliberate lapping motions she knew would push her lover over the brink, Miranda felt herself let go as well. 'This is how it should be,' she thought wistfully just before the feeling hit her, banishing all coherent thought, 'both of us sharing this feeling together...'

Violet paused before the closed bathroom door, a few towels and some of her old clothes bundled in her arms. 'I have such a strange family,' she muttered, about to slide the door open with her foot when a sound caught her ear.

An amused grin traced its way across the woman's face as she leaned her ear against the thin wooden door. "Ohh!" Violet whispered to herself, listening to the occasional splashes of water, and the quiet sounds of Miranda's uneven breathing, "Like, I totally thought so!"

With a gleam of mischief in her eye, Misty's eldest sister set down her burden and slid the door open ever so slightly. Through the narrow opening, Violet could see Miranda a short distance away. She had slid down a ways into the warm water, and what was left of the bubbles conspired to obscure Violet's view, but by virtue of the movements and sounds courier made, Violet had no doubt in her mind as to what Miranda was up to.

'So this is the sort of company my little sister's been keeping,' thought Violet from the doorway mirthfully, licking her suddenly dry lips as the soft sounds filled her ears, 'This like so totally needs further investigation...'

Miranda, unaware of her silent observer continued about her task. With a contented smile and a soft exclamation she brought her knees up as the feeling of ecstasy finally caressed her mind. "Misty..." she whispered quietly, leaning her head back and biting her lower lip to keep from crying out.

Beneath the soapy water, two of the courier's fingers gently traced teasing paths across her labia before coming together at her clit, playfully teasing it before Miranda's middle finger moved between them to rub softly against it. The woman's body tensed as she slid her finger back and forth with almost painful slowness, urging herself forward slowly and carefully.

'I shouldn't make so much noise,' she chided herself sternly, reaching up with her free hand and giving one breast a bit of a squeeze to alleviate the sudden peculiar ache it felt, 'I can't let them hear..."

From the doorway, Violet stopped the unconscious clenching of her fingers as she leaned forward, one eye closed as she peered through the barely open door. 'I wonder,' she thought wistfully, pushing her legs closer together in an attempt to alleviate the mild tingle she felt between them, 'Like if Misty knows just how much of a total perv this Miranda girl is!'

Violet tried to add an extra touch of self-righteousness to her words, but hardly felt it. She could see many reasons why her sister had chosen the courier as her lover, even if Miranda was by Violet's standards a 'hick'. Even now Violet could remember the thoughtful mystery of Miranda's gray eyes. The way they could look right into a person's soul, yet reveal nothing about the woman herself. They were almost the colour storm clouds, or at least that of the quiet haze that often surrounded the mysterious tower in her hometown of Lavender.

That same place had more than likely given her the 'Lavender look' people from the south often commented on. Though Miranda's skin was a touch pale, it still showed life. Almost in defiance against entropy itself, yet at the same time embracing the eerie twilight most citizens of Lavender spent their lives enduring. By the same token, Miranda's hair was the colour of murkrow's feathers, a deep blackness that reflected little light, and drew one's eyes to it like an inescapably beautiful void. And though it seemed to have a bit of a mind of its own, and needed to be kept mostly tied back save for the woman's stubborn bangs, Violet felt a tinge of envy.

She knew it was more than likely that Miranda had never dyed it; she had never 'had' to spend hours taking care of her bountiful locks. Miranda's life style and small town values made her the sort who simply let it be. Occasionally hacking off the last few inches of it to keep it at vaguely the same length. But what it was a beauty that Violet had tried to find in her own hair of deepest purple, yet had never quite achieved.

'I must have her,' the woman thought almost hungrily, kneeling so that she could bunch up the front hem of her long skirt and touch herself through the unnecessarily frilly undergarment she wore, and pushed the door open a little farther, 'Misty like totally doesn't deserve such a creature.'

For several long minutes, Violet spied upon Miranda, teasing moisture to her fingertips before sliding her fingers under the waistband of her unnecessarily complicated undergarments and moving one slowly between the twin rises of her labia. "It's so not fair," she whispered, dragging her middle finger back and forth until she could take it no longer, "Like, little sisters should only get 'hand-me-downs'!"

Violet stopped herself from crying out as her middle finger slid up insider herself while she leaned against the doorframe for support. For one agonizing moment, she thought Miranda had heard her, and Violet's mind quickly conjured up images of the younger woman quickly sliding open the door only to stare in shock as Violet half knelt before her with one hand under her long skirt.

Once the tense moment passed, however, and she realized that Miranda had merely stopped to unbind her hair, the image actually sent a small exited chill down Violet's spine. "Yes," she hissed under her breath, closing her eyes tightly as she imagined Miranda flinging the door open and standing before her naked except for the water that glistened across her skin, and the stray suds that still clung to her body, "Just like that..."

Violet continued with the thought, imagining herself blushing deeply as Miranda's eyes reflected a stoic calm, yet her face held an expression of barely concealed embarrassed amusement. Without a word Miranda stared down at Violet with an almost demanding look as she glanced back up with a mixture of embarrassed desire.

Violet smiled to herself as she knelt down upon the floor, pulling her skirt up in the front and leaning forward slightly in an imagined attempt to retain false modesty yet still entice her sister's lover. The gym leader further imagined herself trying to speak, desperate to offer an explanation as her fingers ruthlessly continued their task, unhindered by her predicament. "Please..." Violet said to the conjured image before her, letting the woman formulate her own opinion as to what Violet needed.

Through half closed eyes, she could almost see a small smile cross Miranda's face as she watched, a gleam of satisfaction finally showing in the courier's eyes. "Continue," Violet imagined Miranda saying, her voice full of the focused confidence she remembered the woman having over two year ago when she'd first arrived at the gym, "Show me the opportunity I passed up the last time."

Violet could only nod obligingly, unbuttoning the front of her blouse as her wetted fingers slid back and over her clit. "Oh-!" she exclaimed helplessly, popping a button off the garment.

The image of Miranda chuckled, watching as the button skittered across the floor behind her. "No matter," the woman said in the maternal tone she reserved for her pokemon, "There are greater needs to be attended to, my dear."

Violet let out a small exclamation as the courier stepped closer and brushed her deep purple hair from her eyes. "An- Anything," stammered Violet, staring up at Miranda with a sudden hungry desire that contrasted her fantasy lover's suddenly loving caress, "Anything you want..."

Violet then stood up upon her shaking knees, raising her head above Miranda's waist level and kissing her stomach just above the navel. For a moment, the thought sent another envious chill thought Violet's mind. Miranda more than likely had never been on any kind of forced diet. Even with her rigorous swimming routine's Violet still had to overcome the temptations brought on by Cerulean's finer restaurants, the sweet smells of sugary snacks from the frequent Summer carnivals and the ravenous hunger she felt after hours of swimming. Yet here was a woman who's life style meant constant exercise, and often only healthy food was available in the seemingly endless expanses between human cities.

But Violet pushed the thought from her mind; she was determined to enjoy the gift that chance had brought her. She imagined drawing back her hand and reaching towards Miranda with a mischievous smile.

Her image of Miranda gave Violet a questioning look, but Violet merely shook her head slowly, carefully watching Miranda's expression as she slid her wetted fingers across Miranda's womanhood, pushing gently and rubbing until Miranda's body quivered and she found it hard to stand.

"There we go," chuckled Violet, bringing her hand back and running one finger across her tongue provocatively, "Hm, we taste good together. It like, must be totally meant to be or something!"

Violet couldn't help but smile as she dropped down a bit and moved towards Miranda's womanhood, licking her lips in anticipation as she felt fingers slide through her hair and guide her forward. "You are like, so mine..." Violet whispered, opening her mouth slightly and reaching out with her tongue, exercising every ounce of patience she could muster before-

From the bathroom Violet heard a rather loud gasp, followed by an embarrassed exclamation and a splash of water. "Crud!" she cursed under her breath, opening her eyes and gritting her teeth in annoyance, "So close..."

The Gym Leader shook her head, sighing as she gathered up the pile of towels and stood up. From the bathroom she could hear Miranda's movements. It was easy to tell she was embarrassed by her sudden out burst, but Violet ignored the temptation to simply walk in unannounced, even if her fantasy had been cut short.

'Oh well,' she thought, straightening out her clothes and suckling the moisture from her fingers as an after thought, 'It can't be half as good as the real thing.'

Miranda turned her head to the sound of a nock at the door. "Come in," she called a touch nervously as she fumbled around for her glasses, "I'm almost done in her anyway."

Violet smiled almost knowingly as she stepped quietly into the room, causing Miranda to look away and grab the bottle of shampoo she'd found. "I was just about to wash my hair, actually," she lied, quickly finding her wits as she pushed back the embarrassment.

"Oh, like you're not using that brand are you?" inquired Violet with a disapproving look as she put the towels down on the counter and looked around for another bottle, "Cause it totally doesn't suit you!"

"Doesn't suit me?" inquired Miranda, skeptically reading the label.

Violet nodded as she walked towards the tub, a different bottle in on hand, and two folded towels in the other. "Here," she offered with some concern, "give your hair a quick rinse and sit on the edge of the tub so I can wash it for you."

"Thanks," replied Miranda, thankful that her hostess either hadn't caught her or at least was polite enough not to mention it, "Just be careful, I think there may still be a bramble or two caught in it."

Violet cringed at the thought of getting anything in her hair as Miranda took off her glasses and leaned forward, dunking her head and hair under for a moment.

"That's better," commented Violet, setting the folded towel near the edge of the tub and watching surreptitiously as Miranda stood with her back to the older woman and sat down upon it.

"This is rather nice of you, considering," said Miranda conversationally, not bothering to put her glasses back on as Violet knelt behind her on another towel.

"It's like, totally not a big deal," the Gym Leader assured, adjusting her skirt so she wouldn't get them it before squirting a blob of oddly coloured liquid into her hand, "But like I just had to get away from the others for a couple of minutes."

"Oh?" inquired Miranda a little suspiciously as she felt the woman's fingers attempt to bunch up her dripping hair.

"Oh, like you know," explained Violet, finding the task of arranging Miranda's hair properly more difficult than she'd anticipated and needing more shampoo, "I can only take so much family reunion stuff at a time. And like my sister's so over reacting about seeing her pokemon again, it's just like, so totally weird!"

"I don't think so," replied Miranda a little defensively, "If I hadn't seen one of mine in three years I know I'd overreact too. Heck, I'd probably have a pile of poetry written about how much I missed him or her. Besides, the way she's so free and uninhibited with her emotions is one of the reasons I love Misty."

"You write?" inquired Violet, half surprised as she finally managed to get most of the courier's hair into one place before emptying the nearly half the bottle to lather it properly.

"Yeah, since I was little," the woman admitted, self-consciously folding her arms across her chest and crossing her legs as Violet worked into a rhythm, "I guess it just wasn't important last time I was here so I just never mentioned it what with everything else that was going on."

"Well, like actually," commented Violet, leaning forward a little and lowering her voice as her fingers traced paths across Miranda's scalp, "That's quite the coincidence."

"Oh? Do tell?"

"Well," replied Violet, a satisfied smile crossing her lips as she found an excuse to lean closer to Miranda's ear and speaking in a hushed tone, "There's a contest being sponsored by that new restaurant that's opening... 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue' I think it's called."

Miranda nodded thoughtfully. "Indeed," the courier explained, "It's the one I dropped a delivery off to last night. Is it at the restaurant or at the fair grounds?"

"The grounds," replied Violet, leaning back and smiling in satisfaction as she made slow, purposeful motions, dragging her nails as she worked in an attempt to send chills down Miranda's spine, "The grand prize is dinner for two at the restaurant."

"There's an irony there," Miranda chuckled, "Looks like Misty'll get that ice-cream she wanted after all."

"Say wha-?" stammered Violet, giving Miranda quizzical look as the commented caught her off balance.

"Nothing," the woman chuckled, shaking her head slightly and trying not to blush, "don't worry about it. So, when is it? Where do I sign up?"

Violet shrugged, suddenly cursing herself for not paying more attention when she'd head about the contest. "Like, I'm not sure, eh," she explained carefully, "But I'm sure it'll say in the paper. And like, there's likely to be fliers at the fairgrounds that'll tell you everything anyway."

"Okay," said Miranda thoughtfully, "I'll be sure to check it out. But in the mean time, I guess I'll have to find a source of inspiration."

A grin crossed Violet's lips as she suppressed the comment that immediately came to mind. "You know," she said, changing the subject as she unraveled the length of Miranda's now thoroughly soapy hair, "this is like, really quite amazing!"

"What is?" asked Miranda, feeling a bit distracted and easily ignoring the sensation of Violet's fingers as they tried unsuccessfully to untie a few loose knots.

"You're hair, it's like totally to die for!" the woman laughed in reply, holding it out to its full length with both hands.

"Thanks mom," Miranda chuckled, not taking the comment completely seriously.

"No, like I totally mean it," assured Violet letting Miranda's hair fall wetly against her back, "It's so long and vibrant. It's like totally the opposite of Misty's."

"There's nothing wrong with your sister's hair," replied Miranda coldly, jumping immediately to her lover's defense.

"But its like, totally short!" explained Violet, taking the length of Miranda's hair and forming it into a pony tail, "And the way she wears it! Yeesh! Like when was that in style?"

"Being in style isn't important to myself or Misty," continued Miranda, her eyes narrowing in annoyance, refusing to be baited so, "Besides, short hair suits her. Misty has a natural beauty that shines from within, and her personal sense of style some how extenuates that."

"So," inquired Violet mischievously as she tossed Miranda's hair over one shoulder and brought her lips close to the woman's neck, "You like 'tomboys' then?"

"When it suits me," Miranda replied coldly with a shrug, regretting that she hadn't invited Misty to join her, and hating the feeling of Violet's hot breath upon her bare shoulder.

"So what you're saying then is," Violet continued with a mischievous giggle as her fingers ran through the length of the courier's soapy hair, "Is that you've had better?"

"I think that your sister's beauty stands in testament to that."

Violet clenched her fingers slightly, but managed to keep her voice level. "Then perhaps someone should show you the other possibilities that life has to offer," she said in a quiet, sultry tone as she leaned forward in one final attempt at more blatant seduction.

Miranda felt an unpleasantly cold shiver run down her spine as Violet's lips touched her neck. An unpleasant mixture of guilt and revulsion fought hard against the small glimmer of pleasure she gained from the gesture before pushing it back down and muting it out.

"My love is taken," said Miranda coldly, carefully reaching back, "It belongs to Misty."

"But like, what about your lust?" inquired Violet in a smug, sultry tone, only then noticing the way Miranda had suddenly grabbed a handful of her hair before yanking it forward.

Not wanting to risk having such a generous handful of her precious commodity torn out, Violet leaned forward into the pull on instinct. Without hesitation, Miranda followed through with the movement, refusing to take pleasure in the fact that Misty's sister was willing to somersault willingly into the tub fully clothed rather than risk having a few hairs yanked out. 

The enormous splash of water was accompanied by a loud shriek, and Miranda had to shield her eyes from the spray as she pulled her legs out of the water. "My lust has not meaning in the face of my loyalty," the courier hissed quietly as the sound of footsteps was heard out in the hall and a thoroughly soaked Violet came up for air gasping with embarrassment and anger.

"What happened!" exclaimed Misty as she burst into the room, once more with Umi draped about her shoulders.

"Your sister had a little accident," said Miranda simply, glancing sideways as Violet as she stood up and gave her soaked through clothes a look of complete embarrassment.

"You okay?" inquired Lily as she entered the room just behind her sister.

"I- I'm fine," Violet replied coolly, glancing at Miranda with uncertainty.

"You should really be more careful," chided Lily as she grabbed one of the unused towels and held it open for her sibling.

"But I feel like a drown rattata," Violet pouted, not glancing back at Miranda as she stepped out of the tub and into the warmth of the towel.

"I'd watch what you say about rattata's," chuckled Misty as the dratini she held glared at the woman, her eyes swirling a dangerous combination of red and orange as she made a quiet hissing sound through her sharp, thin teeth.

"It's just an expression," assured Miranda reaching out to pet Umi as Misty came closer, "Don't worry, little one, you needn't defend Nezumi's honor today."

Misty laughed as the dratini slid from her shoulders and wrapped herself protectively around Miranda's arm before nuzzling against her affectionately. "Should I be jealous?" the girl inquired glancing over her shoulder as her siblings filed out of the room to find Violet some dry clothes.

"Of Umi or Violet?" asked Miranda, trying to keep her tone light as she gave the little dragon's eye ridges an affectionate scratch.

"Um, both?" offered Misty, turning back with an amused expression, yet her eyes mirrored concern.

"Never," replied Miranda sincerely as she swung her feet down onto the bottom step before pushing herself up and stepping down onto the floor, "You know me better than that."

Misty nodded, the smile slipping from her face as her eyes teared up. "I know," she said quietly, gladly accepting the embrace that Miranda immediately offered, "But you don't know what these people are like. My sisters, it's like I'm a play thing to them..."

"Shh, I know, dearest," Miranda whispered into her ear as Umi slithered into the still warm water of the tub and stared back at the human's with eyes that glowed greenish with sympathy, "but there's no reason to worry. You're the only Cerulean sister that I want. The only one who's sensational in my eyes."

Misty took a deep breath, inhaling the combination of Miranda's scent and the vanilla-ish flavor of the shampoo in her hair. "Just tell me you love me," she pleaded, looking up at Miranda with an expression that made the courier's heart break just to look upon her.

"With all my heart," said Miranda her tone serious as she met and held her lover's gaze, "I love you Misty. And nothing, not the span of year, not even if there's a hundred thousand miles between us, and certainly not one of your sisters is going to change that. I love you so much that sometimes I feel as though I could burst... Is there nothing that I can do to assure you of this fact?"

Misty lifted her arms and returned the embrace, not caring that she was getting soaking wet as she hugged Miranda back. "I'm sorry," she whispered, noticing the tears in her beloved's eyes, "I... I shouldn't be so insecure. It's not like me."

"And tears aren't like me," replied Miranda, a smile coming to her lips as she saw that Misty wasn't completely distraught, "But, can you forgive me? Even if it's just for worrying you?"

Misty looked thoughtful for a moment, glancing at her sibling's wet footprints across the tiled floor. "Only if you tell me the truth about what happened here," she said simply, glancing back at Miranda with a serious look that made Miranda's stomach clench almost painfully.

"Even if I must run the risk of hurting you, my love?" inquired Miranda, a feeling of deep uncertainty creeping up on her.

Misty nodded slowly. "I can handle it, Miranda," she assured, resting her head against her beloved's naked shoulder, "I'm stronger that I look."

"I know," replied Miranda, a hint of amusemnt entering her voice, "It's one of the things that I love about you. But, if it will make you feel better, your sister... Violet, she tried to seduce me."

Misty tensed, and Miranda felt a deep sense of dread overcome her. 'Here I am,' she thought mirthlessly, 'Standing naked, wet, and vulnerable in a stranger's house. And now I'm about to loose one of things that makes life worth living...'

"Go on," said Misty after a moment, her voice seeming a little distant, yet still lacking malice. To Miranda, though, it sounded akin to the voice judgment.

"Violet... She kissed my neck," the woman explained, tears falling from her eyes as she spoke, "She just thought it was all a game. Like somehow my love for you is just a game I'm playing... So I just reacted without thinking... I- I tossed her head first into tub."

Miranda felt a horrible tension overwhelm her as she finished her story, and a dread uncertainty as Misty looked up at her questioning. "You threw her into the tub?" she inquired, a small smile budding upon her lips.

Miranda nodded, a glimmer of hope finding a place in her despair.

"That's... That's..." stammered Misty, starting to laugh, "That's hysterical!"

"Then you're not mad?" inquired Miranda, as Misty squeezed her tightly laughing.

"What! No! Of course not!" assured Misty, leaning back with her arms around Miranda's torso, "I trust you, Miranda. And I love you."

Before the courier could reply, Misty kissed her. With the gesture, Miranda felt her worry drain away, replaced by a sudden mirth as she put her arms around Misty once more. 'Thank you, Violet,' she thought in amusement, 'You've given me my inspiration...!'

Chapter VI

Miranda tucked the bottom of the unfamiliar frilly white blouse into her jeans as she followed Misty down the narrow flight of steps to the gym area. Once again the humid scent of water filled her lungs, but this time it wasn't accompanied by the echoing shouts of happy pokemon. The only sounds were the quiet lapping of the water against the sides of the pool and their already echoing footsteps.

"You're sure it's still alright to stay here?" the woman inquired, taking the towel from her shoulders and giving drying her hair another chance.

Misty smiled as she entered the stadium-sized room and turned to face Miranda as she slid the door closed behind them. "Don't worry," replied Misty, trying to banish Miranda's doubtful look, "Even if Violet's really mad at you, this is still my home. And you're always welcome here."

Miranda nodded and glanced out over the quiet pool, spotting a few of Misty's pokemon several meters down. "I think he's sulking," she commented as she crouched down and Misty walked up behind her.

"My horsea?" the trainer inquired, leaning on Miranda's shoulders and looking down in time to see the pokemon in question swim rather quickly away, "Yeah, I see what you mean. I guess he's had some time to think about what he did."

"Well, I really can't blame him," responded Miranda, glancing up at Misty, "The first time I saw a ghost I was a little unnerved too. Heck, when I first met Wraith I was actually really scared."

"Really?" commented Misty, surprise crossing her face as she focused on Miranda, "I thought you had no problem with ghosts."

Miranda smiled sagely and shrugged. "That's different," she explained, "Most of the ghosts I grew up with avoided people for the most part. When I met Wraith I was actively hunting him."

"Oh yeah!" laughed Misty, "He was making a huge mess of the Sylph Co mainframe, wasn't he?"

"The whole building, actually," she correct with a laugh, waving when she noticed the horsea glance up at her guiltily, "Say, any thoughts on what to name him? Or the others?"

Misty stood up and walked around to crouch beside Miranda, watching her goldeen go back to pestering her starmie. "Um, I was thinking of 'Marina' for the goldeen," she explained thoughtfully, "Maybe 'Umberlee' for the Starmie. Hm, I guess Poseidon would work for my horsea. It's a rather impressive name for such a small pokemon, but he can use the self-esteem!"

Miranda laughed, motioning to the shy water-type to come closer. "Come on, Poseidon," she called as Misty smiled encouragingly, "I forgive you. And I've put away the big scary ghost!"

The horsea turned his head to one side curiously, only hearing water muffled words, but knowing that they were intended for him. With a glance over at his happily smiling trainer, he pushed himself upwards, leaving a trail of bubbles as he went.

Misty laughed and shielded her eyes as the horsea broke the surface of the water, splashing both trainers with warm water. "Sea?" he inquired leaping at his trainer, and forcing her to throw out her arms in time not to let the poor thing drop on the ground at her feet.

"You two okay?" inquired Miranda as Misty fell back wards, still laughing.

"No worries!" assured Misty, holding her water pokemon out at arms length and speaking to him in a serious tone. "Now listen up, you," she said, trying to copy Miranda's teaching tone as best she could, "I've decided on a real name for you, but I want to make sure you like it, okay?"

The horsea tilted his head questioningly but attentively. "Sea," he said pensively, glancing at Miranda with a bit of a worried expression.

"Fear not, little one," assured Miranda, reaching out and petting the pokemon lightly upon the head, "See, new shirt. No problem."

The horsea nodded, looking happy before turning back to his trainer with an expectant look. "So, as I was saying," continued Misty, struggling back into a sitting position despite the damp floor, "I'd like to officially name you 'Poseidon'. Is that alright with you?"

The pokemon blinked at his trainer, looking confused for a moment before making a few happy sounds. "I guess he doesn't care, so long as you're happy," commented Miranda in an amused tone.

"Ah! Unconditional love!" laughed Misty, giving the officially named Poseidon a hug before placing him carefully back in the pool, "Now I just have to get the other two's attention."

"What about 'Aussie'?" inquired Miranda as the horsea swam happily away.

"Aussie?"

"That's what Nezumi calls your psyduck," replied Miranda a little guardedly.

"Do I even want to know what he calls me?" the girl chuckled in response, reaching onto her belt for the psyduck's pokeball.

"Not really," laughed Miranda as the duck appeared dangerously close to the edge of the pool, "But for the record he's called you 'water chick', 'boss lady's babe', and 'Miri's dream come true'."

"'Boss lady's babe'?" inquired Misty, giving Miranda an odd look as the woman shrugged helplessly, "if he wasn't so cute, I'd smack him for that one. But did he really call me 'Miri's dream come true'?"

Miranda smiled sheepishly, turning away as she exhaled slowly. "No," she admitted, trying to hide her blushing, "I just made that one up. Although he does call me 'Miri' sometimes."

"'Miri'," replied Misty thoughtfully, "You know, you never explained that nickname to me. Is that what people called you when you were little?"

Miranda nodded, turning back to Misty, her eyes seeming a little distant behind her glasses. "Well, mostly just my father and my mom's sister," she explained, smiling as Misty's psyduck suddenly lost his footing and began flailing his arms in a desperate attempt not to fall into the pool, "but my father's the one who actually came up with it."

"I see-!" responded Misty, lunging forward just in time to grab her pokemon by his stubby arms and pull him back from the brink and the very real danger of drowning. "Look you stupid 'duck!" she scolded her pokemon as he leaned against her, shivering with fright, "You're a water pokemon! Learn to swim already! Yeesh! Anyway, as I was saying, I like it. But does it bother you to have people call you that?"

Miranda shrugged thoughtfully. "Sometimes," she admitted as Misty lead her pokemon a short distance away from the edge of the pool, "Because it was sort of my father's own private name for me. My relatives use it sometimes, but I don't mind usually."

"Do you mind when I use it from time to time?" inquired Misty in mock meekness, causing a small smile to cross Miranda's lips.

"I feel honored that women I love has chosen to use the name my father once called me," she answered melodramatically, bowing her head once in approval.

"Thank you," replied Misty, glancing down at the pokemon she still held, "Now as for you!"

The psyduck cringed a little, his eyes going wide with fright at the sudden change in Misty's tone. "I've got the perfect name for you, psyduck," his trainer announced in a sly tone, "'Kappa'."

"Psy?" inquired the psyduck, clutching both sides of his head as his head ache suddenly got worse at the mere thought of having to remember something new.

"Oh that's just too funny!" laughed Miranda, "But don't kappas have no top to their heads, and if the water leaks out they die?"

"Something like that," chuckled Misty, scratching her pokemon on the head to make sure it was firmly attached, "But also some people call golducks 'kappas'. Maybe it'll be a lucky name for him." 

"You just want him to evolve," said Miranda teasingly as she walked over and sat cross-legged beside Misty.

"Have I ever denied that?" the trainer replied with a smile before turning her attention to the quiet splashing she heard by the pool, "Oh! Great timing ladies!"

Her starmie and goldeen stared back at her as Misty turned to face the sound, an aura of expectation seeming to surround them. "I guess they talked to 'Poseidon'," commented Miranda.

"Guess so," Misty agreed pointing at her goldeen first, "Okay girls, firstly, Goldeen. Your new name is Marina. Starmie? I'm calling you Umberlee. Unless either of you object..."

The goldeen gave a nonchalant reply, flipping backwards and disappearing under the water, not seeming to mind the change. The starmie, however, gave a more meaningful reply.

Misty felt a gentle brush against her mind, and a moment later felt a deep sense of approval emanating form the Umberlee. "Wow..." the girl stammered, leaning back against the strange sense of vertigo that overcame her, "When did you learn to do that?"

"About a week ago," came the voice of Lily as she pushed the door to the upstairs open and walked towards them, "I guess her psychic half is starting to assert itself."

"Really?" inquired Misty, a wide grin crossing her face, "Has she learned any actual psychic techniques at all?"

"Not really," replied her sister with a shrug, tossing her long red hair over one shoulder as she moved to hand Miranda a newspaper clipping, "Well anyway, Violet said you wanted to see this."

"Thanks," said Miranda absently as she took the cut out and scanned it over quickly, "Say, um, is your sister okay?"

"Violet's fine," assured Lily dismissively, "Her pride's bruised, but she'll recover, "On, and, Misty?"

"Yes?" her sibling inquired, her tone somewhat defensive as she glanced suspiciously.

"Yeah, like the three of us are going out shopping," Lily explained, not even noticing her sister's reply, "so would you mind watching the gym for a few hours? Thanks, don't wait up!"

Misty shook her head and turned to Miranda. "See what I mean?" she asked rhetorically as her sister headed back upstairs, "I'm furniture to them. Not that I mind looking after the place and all. So, what's with the secret note?"

"Um, a love letter?" offered Miranda, smiling at the expression that momentarily crossed Misty's face before reading the article more thoroughly, "It's the contest your sister told me about before she tried something stupid."

"Oh?"

"Poetry contest," she continued as Misty shuffled closer and read over her shoulder, "It's being held at the Festival, and the first prize is rather ironic."

"A free dinner for two at 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue'," read Misty, leaning her head on Miranda's shoulder, "Isn't that the place-?"

"Where we made a delivery to last night?" finished Miranda with an amused grin, finishing Misty's sentence without thinking, "Yes. A delightful irony really."

"Hmm, and it does sound kinda romantic," added Misty, slipping her arm around Miranda's and holding it tight, "Don't you think?"

"Kinda..." replied, Miranda reluctantly, struggling to translate the strange, snooty sounding name, "But we'll find out when I win."

"Oooh! You're confident," teased Misty, looking up at Miranda with an amused smile.

"I afford to be," the woman assured her, "I have the greatest source of inspiration in the know universe by my side."

"Kappa!" inquired Misty, unable to keep a straight face as Miranda's jaw dropped and she struggled to speak.

"That's it!" scolded Miranda mock severity as Misty laughed, startling Kappa awake, "Now you're in trouble!"

"Why? What'd I do?" asked Misty, chuckling as she looked up at Miranda as innocently as possible.

Miranda sighed and shook her head as she crouched down and scooped Misty up into her arms. "Well normally I'd say that you're guilty of making me deliriously happy," she explained as Misty put her arms around Miranda's neck for support, "But I think that joke deserves a harsher punishment that simple reciprocation."

"And just what are you going to do about then, my love?" inquired Misty, using the sweetest tone she could muster, brushing her nose against Miranda's as she spoke.

"I think," her lover replied, slyly before turning towards the pool, "That I'll just toss you in!"

"Ah, no!" exclaimed Misty, laughing even as she clung to Miranda's neck for dear life, "At least not fully clothed, anyway!"

"Oh all right," the woman chuckled, a mirthful smile crossing her face as she turned around before releasing Misty's legs, "Then I'll just have to undress you first!"

"What!" laughed Misty, as embarrassed as she was amused by Miranda's sudden playfulness, "My sisters are coming down soon! I can't let them see me naked!"

"They've seen me," Miranda teased, one arm still about her lover's shoulders as she lifted the front of Misty's top just enough to get a reaction, "It's only fair. Besides, it'll take them hours to put on their make-up!"

"Hey! That's not nice," Misty giggled, grabbing the bottom of her shirt and pulling it back down before pushing against Miranda with her hip, sending the courier a step back, "Although it's very true!"

"I suppose," agreed Miranda, looking thoughtful, "And actually, it's better that they don't see you naked."

"Oh?" inquired Misty, giving Miranda a knowing glance, mostly sensing what was to come, "And why's that?"

"Well," the woman explained with an expression of helplessness, "Then they'd see what true beauty is..." at this point, she adopted Violet's 'Valley girl' tone and said, "Then they'd like totally not be able to compare to it, and they'd just like to totally die!"

Miranda smiled as Misty's laughter echoed through the room as the door slid open and her trio of siblings entered the gym area. "To speak the name is to invoke the power," she quoted, smiling politely and nodding as the three sisters stopped and stared at Misty.

"Like, what's so funny?" inquired Violet, as always the leader of the terrible trio.

"Oh, nothing," assured Misty, waving her hand dismissively as she wiped a tear from her eye, "Just us being despicably cute."

"I see," commented Lily suspiciously as Violet cringed and Daisy smirked, "Well, we're off.

"So, like take care of the Gym while we're gone, okay Misty?" replied Violet, her falsely friendly tone sounding more like an order to Miranda's ears.

"No problem," assured Misty with a shrug, "I checked the register, and we're not expecting any challengers today."

"Well, we'll probably be gone until this evening," Violet called over her shoulder as the trio wandered past them and towards the exit.

"So don't wait up, you two," chuckled Lily mysteriously.

"Shopping is such a total chore!" added Daisy, their heals clicking noisily across the floor as they entered the foyer and their voices became a muffled cacophony before the being silenced by the final sounding boom of the main doors sliding shut and locking behind them. 

"You know," commented Miranda, shaking her head as the echoes faded, "They kinda scare me."

"Just don't give them too much leeway," Misty advised, walking towards the stairs, "Anyway, you want anything? I was going to throw on my bathing suit and take a swim."

"Well, my back pack if it's not too much trouble," said Miranda a little sheepishly, "I have this idea for a poem I could enter in the contest, and it's going to burn a hole in my head if I don't get it down soon."

Misty smiled, shaking her head in amusement as Miranda checked the back of her head with her hand, a perplexed expression crossing the woman's face. "Okay, I'll be down in a second," she promised before jogging up the stairs.

"Thanks," Miranda called before glancing down at Kappa. "You need swimming lessons, don't you?" she inquired rhetorically, causing the psyduck to tilt his head to one side and stare blankly at her in confusion, "Okay, this is probably spoiling her, but I'll see if I can get Umi to help you."

Miranda unfastened a pokeball and hit a hidden switch, causing it to expand to functional size before holding it out towards the pool. "Umi, dear," she called out lovingly, "It's time to spoil you rotten again!"

With a flash of light and a splash, Miranda's dratini reappeared, floating happily in the immense pool. "Draaaa!" she exclaimed, about to dive under causing Miranda to shake her head sternly.

"Not just yet, love," she told the little dragon, causing Umi's eyes to swirl from contented yellow-green to a disappointed mauve, "I need you to help Kappa learn to swim some more. You've done okay teaching him before, but he still needs practice, okay?"

Umi nodded, looking a little forlorn before glancing at Kappa and blasting him with a small jet of water. "Psy! Psy! Psy!" the pokemon exclaimed, running in fear from his own element as Miranda suppressed a laugh.

"No! Not like that, dear," she scolded half hearted, "try just getting him into the water first, then make sure he doesn't drown. For some reason Kappa hasn't figured out he's amphibious yet..."

Miranda shook her head, grumbling at the bizarre ludicrousness of Misty's psyduck, yet strangely reassured that the Universe had a sense of humor. With a wary sigh, she went up into the bleachers and took a seat in the front row before pulling out her note pad and scribbling a basic outline for her latest work.

"Started already?" inquired Misty as Miranda scratched out the first few notes and stared down at her note pad in dismay.

"Yeah," she replied warily, glancing up at Misty and smiling, "I want to make sure it looks alright before I add it to my book.

Misty nodded, lifting Miranda's heavy backpack over the short wall before leaning over and glancing at the small booklet Miranda held. "Can I see?" she asked playfully, feeling more mischievous than curious.

"No!" chuckled Miranda, trying to sound worried as she held the precious note pad close to her heart as she set her backpack down, "Not until the tomorrow. Then I shall reveal the depth of my love for you to thousands of people! Unless you'd prefer that I didn't. I'm sure I've got something old I can dig out of my poetry book."

"No, that's alright," assured Misty with an amused grin as Miranda opened the weather-beaten pack and yanked out a thick, hardcover book, "I certainly have nothing hide. And I have no fear of showing off my chosen lover to the masses."

"Then I'll be sure to make it extra sappy and embarrassing, just for you!" assured Miranda jokingly as she smiled down at the old black covered book, filled with yellowing parchment and a decade's worth of memories.

"Hey, I like sappy and romantic," replied Misty, trying to sound hurt as she took her first real good look at the tome Miranda held, "Hey, what's with the scratches?" she asked as the woman turned the book over and opened to the first page.

"It's from a persian," Miranda explained grimly, looking up at Misty over her glasses and pausing for a moment as her brain registered the fact that the pale green two piece bathing suit her lover wore was new to her, "It happened The year I left home; the same year that I received Nezumi. If it wasn't for this book, I'd probably be the one with the scars." 

Misty gulped, cringing at the thought of how big the feline would have to have been to carve out the four long, deep gashes in the precious book. "He doesn't remember the incident himself," Miranda continued with a shrug, idly running her fingertips along the deep gashes, "But he doesn't like felines much. I suppose the memories still in his subconscious somewhere. It's a good thing I was there, or he'd have made a quick snack for that monster."

"By the looks of things," added Misty, feeling concerned though she knew the incident had been long before they'd even met, "You were on the menu as well. I don't think I like that idea much."

Miranda shrugged, flipping the book closed as she thoughtfully searched Misty's eyes. "I'd do it again," she promised, her tone distant, but loving, "He was worth it. Even with his smart mouth."

Misty smiled; laughing a bit under her breath as Miranda looked down at the book and opened it's creaking binding to one of the last poems. "Well, I should go make sure Umi doesn't drown Kappa," she commented, glancing over her shoulder at the sudden frantic splashing and frightened yelling from the pool, "Don't work too hard!"

Miranda glanced up and smiled in amusement. "This is work?" Misty inquired laughing and holding her book back protectively as Misty dove gracefully into the pool as though it were the most natural thing in the world. 'For you I doubt it is, my love,' the courier mused, glancing at the first poem she'd ever composed for Misty. The black ink staining the special paper the book was bound with almost symbolically, 'Not that this is for me.'

She closed the book a bit hesitantly and tossed the note pad on top of it, partially covering the cover's wounds. 'Okay,' Miranda told herself, 'Time to show the world what I'm capable of.'

Once her pen touched the paper, Miranda felt could almost feel the weight of unused words pressing against her mind, their deep desire to spill out upon the page unhindered by the fact that it was merely a rough draft. Without looking up, she wrote frantically, pausing only to haphazardly cross out spelling errors and occasionally put tiny 'X's before whole stanzas to symbolize the fact that they were simply to be abandoned. As she wrote, Miranda even gave up any sense of chronology with the work, writing as the ideas came, and making little number notes to tell her which stanzas went where, occasionally adding bracketed alternate phrases at the ends of lines in case her other ideas either meshed better with a different wordings, were more meaningful, or just plain sounded better.

As time ticked by, Miranda absently noted that she couldn't hear the splashing of the water, the joyful calls of the pokemon, or Misty's nearly musical laughter. She took a moment to focus a part of her brain on it, letting it in so that her love for Misty could focus her creative energies. Giving her muse a truer focus, and ultimate goal.

'This is almost like making love with her,' the woman mused, her ears half listening, her senses all but unaware of the world around her save for the sound of Misty's voice, and what she was doing in her name, 'My mind focused on a single goal, my senses focused only upon my beloved.'

Miranda glanced up in time to see Misty pull herself from the pool. In that instant, the image burned itself permanently into her mind. Time seeming to slow to a near halt with Misty's hands placed firmly on the edge of the pool, pushing her upper half into the air as her serene smile was reflected in a million tiny droplets of water that seemed all but reluctant to fall to earth rather than hang suspended for all eternity, reflecting a beauty they were but a shadow of.

Misty opened her eyes, unfreezing the moment, and blushing as she noticed Miranda admiring her. With a wider smile, she pulled herself the rest of the way out of the water, and glanced over her shoulder absently, making sure that the pokemon could get along without her for the moment. Then, as she turned back to face her lover, Misty reached up and unfastened her hair, letting it fall wetly across her face as her amused smile became one of mischief.

Without a word, Miranda set down her note pad and returned the smile, looking on with admiration as Misty stepped closer, dripping as tiny beads of water covered her body as her bathing suit clung so tightly it left little to Miranda's imagination.

"I haven't worn this thing in quite a while," the trainer explained in a curious tone, tilting her head ever so slightly to one side as she reached up to unfasten the clasp in the front, "I found it when I went upstairs and I'm surprised it still fits. But it's a touch uncomfortable..."

Miranda pursed her lips as the clasp came undone with an almost ominous -click-, and the two halves of Misty's top fell to the sides, allowing her only tantalizing glimpse of her lover's bosom.

"You know," continued Misty, leaning forward just a little as she took hold of the bottom half of her bathing suit with both hands, her voice wavering ever so slightly as she spoke, "It's interesting how different pokemon view our need for clothing..." Miranda swallowed, exhaling slowly as Misty slowly pushed the bottom half of her pale green swimsuit a short distance over the swell of her hips, "Staryu and starmies don't seem to notice. The lack of real eyes, I suppose. Where as goldeen think we're silly to worry about such things..." Misty's smile broadened somewhat as she turned around, teasingly protecting her modesty as her swimsuit slid down on her toned, athletic legs, "And psyducks are just to stupid to notice."

"I- I see," commented Miranda, crossing her legs uncomfortably and nearly breaking her pen in half as Misty stepped out of the garment, the firm rise of her bottom an unavoidably provocative eye-catcher before standing up straighter and stretching out her muscles.

"I hope so," Misty chuckled as her top fell from her shoulders before glancing over her shoulder at Miranda and blushing as she leapt forward, diving into the pool once more, scattering water-  
pokemon in all directions.

"Breathtaking," Miranda mused, standing up and leaning on the retaining wall as she watched Misty swim at an amazing speed towards the bottom of the pool, "A creature worthy of a thousand ballads."

Setting her notepad down on the wall, and scribbling a few notes whenever her muse whispered new inspirations into her ear, Miranda stood and watched Misty as she swam. Her graceful movements almost making Umi seem clumsy by comparison as she glided through the water, holding her breath for longer than seemed possible.

When Misty finally returned to the surface for breath, she broke the surface as dramatically as possible, ever aware of Miranda's quiet voyeurism. With a joyful smile, she held her arms out and head back, her orangish hair falling flat by the weight of the water. Then, as Misty arched her back and continued her forward momentum, she inhaled another lungful sweet air, and slid into the water, head first into her favored element. Leaving Miranda with images of water glistening of her naked skin, clinging almost hungrily to Misty before her lover disappeared beneath the waves once again. There one moment, gone the next, almost akin to a half forgotten dream or an unconfirmed sighting of a legendary pokemon.

"I'm going to be here all day," chuckled Miranda, taking off her glasses and rubbing her eyes before brushing her bangs back to distract herself long enough for coherent thought to return, only to have the moment stolen fully by the chime of her watch.

With a wary sigh, she glanced at the timepiece, clicking it into pager mode. As she feared, the Courier Crew dispatch number was scrolling hurriedly across the tiny screen. "I'm only half thankful they gave me one of these," she muttered sitting down and digging through her backpack until she found the cell-phone she hated using before hitting the speed dial.

The line made a few odd noises as the satellite automatically rerouted the signal to the closest dispatch center. "Cerulean Dispatch," came the mildly edgy tone of the man on duty, "How can I help you?"

"Yeah, this is Lilcamp. Courier number 09143102, I just got a page from you guys?" replied Miranda, leaning back in her seat warily, wishing she was allowed the simple contentment of watching Misty's naked form glide effortlessly through the calm waters of the Olympic sized swimming pool.

"Oh! Oh good!" came the dispatcher's all too relieved response, "Sorry to bug you, ma'am, but it seems there's been a small accident and-"

"An accident? Where?" demanded Miranda, leaping to her feet, "It isn't Zack is it!"

"No ma'am," assured the dispatcher, "It was our usual mail courier. Some joker thought it'd be funny to toss a crowbar through the front spokes of his bike."

"Ouch! Is he okay?"

"He's expected to live," the man commented with what must have been a mirthful grin, "but we're still waiting to hear from the hospital as to when he'll be on his feet again. He flew quite a distance over his handlebars apparently. Good thing he had that jigglypuff with him to land on..."

"For sure," laughed Miranda, the thought of the hapless courier sailing head first into his over inflated jigglypuff making her chuckle despite the seriousness of the matter, "So, how big a route are we talking here?"

"Oh, maybe an hour," assured the dispatcher, "Two if the weather decides not to cooperate. You're lucky, though, it would've been longer but if he hadn't been attacked at the midway point."

"Lucky me," commented Miranda giving Misty a mournful look as she surfaced again and gave the courier a quizzical look, "Anyway, I can be at the hospital in ten minutes or so to grab the rest of his delivery in about ten minutes."

"Great," replied the dispatcher, cheering up considerably, "Thanks Ms. Lilcamp, we appreciate it!"

"Not a prob'," commented Miranda, hitting the 'End' button and tossing the phone back in her backpack as Misty walked over and leaned over the wall.

"What's up?"

"Oh, duty calls," the woman explained, stuffing her book back in with the phone, "No rest of the wicked, I suppose."

"You'll be back in time for supper, I hope?" asked Misty, shuffling her feet as Miranda stood back up and met her hopeful gaze.

"I won't be gone a half second longer than I have to be," Miranda promised with a reassuring smile, holding Misty's chin affectionately as she leaned forward to kiss her.

"Oh, and I heard you mention a hospital," added Misty as Miranda pulled reluctantly away, before coming out from behind the short wall, "I hope everything's okay."

Miranda nodded, a reminiscent smile crossing her lips. "I'm sure I've had worse injuries," she assured, idly wondering just how bad off the courier was and who'd had the audacity to do such a thing, "But if not, I might have deliver the mail for the next few days."

"I see," commented Misty worriedly, "Then I guess you'd miss the contest..."

"It's the price we non city-bound courier's pay for our freedom, my love," Miranda explained, coming around to give her a half a hug good-bye, "We have to stand in when the city-bound couriers are sick or injured."

"That's okay," assured Misty, being careful not to get Miranda wet, but trying to give her a hug good-by all the same, "I'm not going anywhere."

Miranda nodded, smiling sadly before turning and walking towards the foyer, refusing to look back. 'I must be getting soft,' she sighed inwardly, 'My dedication to duty seems to be failing... Oh well, it is a small price to pay for love.'

"Ooo! Draaa!" came a panicked voice behind her as she opened the double doors that lead to the Gym's front foyer.

"Umi?" asked Miranda, spinning around in time to see her dratini slithering out of the water to race frantically towards her. A panicked took had crossed the suddenly stricken dragon's face as she slithered awkwardly across the tiled surface after her trainer.

The courier could only smile at the forlorn sounds the dratini made as she stopped at Miranda's feet and reared up, her eyes swirling a combination of orange and yellow.

"I'll be back soon, dear," Miranda assured, picking up the slippery serpent and holding her wet body at arm's length, "Just stay and play with Misty for now."

"Iiiini!" exclaimed Umi sadly, reaching forward to poke Miranda's nose with her snout in a gesture that always filled the woman's heart with love and made her laugh.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay and play with your friends, Umi?" Miranda inquired, glancing past the little dragon at the group of pokemon who looked on in curiosity.

Umi turned, following Miranda's gaze. Her eyes changing to a thoughtful lavender as she mulled it over before turning back and brushing her trainer's cheek with her snout affectionately. "Draaa!" she agreed before slithering free of Miranda's grasp and making her way back to the pool.

"Bye!" called Miranda in a maternal tone, laughing in her amusement, and glad to see that her pokemon cared about her as much as she cared about them, "See you soon!"

She gave Misty a final glance, and the trainer blew her a kiss. "Farewell, my love," the courier whispered, turning away before her resolve could erode any further, and hurried out the door...

Even from under the water, Misty could hear the front doors of the gym open and close, followed by the sound of unhurried footsteps across the tiled floor. With a 'follow me' motion to Umberlee, she swam to the surface, a strange suspicion over coming her.

What Misty saw when she partially left the water caused anger to immediately stir within her. Before the trainer, standing by the pool with a determined look upon his face and an apprehensive looking pikachu on his shoulder, was Ash.

"What are you doing here!" she demanded as Umberlee surfaced directly in front of her, protecting her modesty, "A Pokemon Gym is sacred ground! You can't just wander in any old time you like!"

Ash shrugged, nervously glancing around the gym as though Misty weren't even there. "Well, sorry, but I heard you were in town and I thought I'd stop by. Maybe see if you'd gotten bored of following that old woman around."

"Old woman!" demanded Misty, clinging to Umberlee with one arm as she shook an angry fist at Ash, "How dare you! Besides, Miranda's only two and a half years older than me, ya know! Which means she's way more mature than you'll ever be!"

"Oh, whatever, Misty!" countered Ash, meeting Misty's hard gaze for the first time as Umi broke the surface of the water, resting upon Misty's shoulder with eyes that swirled an angry red, "Look, we've been together all this time, why leave now? You know I'm going back to the League again, eh? And this time, I intend to win!"

"Yeah, so?" laughed Misty cynically as she felt the dratini's tail wrap protectively around her torso, "You'll only loose again anyway. And the League isn't accepting challengers until next year anyway. Furthermore, there's no way I'm wasting one more second of my life with you! If I want a heartless, unfeeling, immature traveling companion, I'll find myself a lobotomized geodude!"

Ash glowered at her dangerously, but said nothing, instead opting to turn and storm out the gym in a huff. As he went, Misty glanced at Pikachu. The yellow furred rodent glanced over his shoulder at her and shook his head sadly. His eyes would have had tears in them if pikachus could cry, and it made Misty's heart sink to see a friend get caught in middle of it all.

"I'm sorry," she whispered once Ash was back out in the sunlight, and hugged her starmie for support, "I'm sorry you had to get stuck with such a crappy trainer, Pikachu."

Umberlee made a concern sound and sent a feeling of deep concern into her trainer's mind as Umi made sympathetic noises and nuzzled Misty's neck. "It's okay, guys," she assured them, turning around to see her other pokemon looking on with equal concern, "I'll be alright. Now, let's see about teaching Umberlee to use her psi powers to their fullest potential, and getting Kappa to learn to swim...!"

Chapter VII

The sun was high above, yet its rays were showing the first signs of weakness as the Earth began to slowly drift away from it, heralding the end of Summer. Throughout the park, a few people and most of the staff were wearing light jackets. The tourists from Cinnabar where easiest to spot, however, they were the ones who continually had to remove their Winter gloves to prove that they'd had their hands stamped.

But the cooler weather failed to stop most of the local population from showing up to the End of Summer Festival, and Misty and Miranda found themselves waiting in a rather long line up to get in.

Once at the ticket booth, Miranda paid for them both and led the way to the closest information booth. Behind the park representative, obviously paid not to look bored, was a huge map of the area, complete with tourist friendly large print and far too happy looking symbols for all the points of interest.

According to the map, the Festival used the natural lake near the center of Cerulean City, with the entrance to the festival at the South shore near the marina, which advertised a weeklong boat show with free admission to all festivalgoers. At the opposite end, the wooded parkland area at the lake's North shore was being used as a place for people to relax and have lunch. If one could ignore the omnipresent concession stands and people shouting out the days specials, while the rest of the End Of Summer Festival encircled the lake with mostly rides games on the West side, and shows and various game booths were confined to the East side. In the lake itself, however, floated the Festival organizer's huge yacht that served as their base of operations. It was also a convenient base camp for the small group of Pokeforce Officers who mostly sat in their motorboats looking bored as they kept an eye on things, waiting to back up their land bound comrades if need be.

"So, what's first on the agenda?" inquired Miranda, giving Misty's hand a squeeze.

"Well, I think we should get you signed up first," her lover offered, checking out the large plague with that listed off the times and locations of the festival's scheduled activities, "We're fairly close to where the contest's going to be held..."

"And that's dangerously close to that water pokemon show their having in fifteen minutes," added Miranda, giving Misty a knowing glance.

"Hey, I never said I didn't have an ulterior motive!" she laughed in reply, suddenly grabbing hold of Miranda's arm and hugging herself against it, "Besides, we're here to have fun, right?"

Miranda smiled, giving Misty a gentle kiss on the forehead. "How could I possibly deny you anything?" she asked rhetorically, "Besides, I don't think they have a gyarados there, and you could probably teach them a few things!"

"Hey, I'm not that good!" laughed Misty, leading the way past a group of lost looking tourists, "Besides, Professor Myria is always there to do a short talk about water types."

"Is she Cerulean's Poke' Prof?" inquired Miranda as they passed through the gates of the marina and followed the brightly coloured cutouts of water pokemon that lead the way to the area they wanted.

"Yup, our very own para-zoologist," replied Misty with a nod, "She's the one who gave me Shadow, way back when. Although I did eventually manage to catch the other two types she had available on my own later."

"The goldeen and the horsea?"

Misty nodded. "New trainers in Cerulean City can only choose water types," explained Misty as they found a good seat in the bleachers overlooking a cordoned off section of lake, "Some people might call that a weakness, but I've always thought of it as something to be proud of."

"Lav'Brats get a choice of a rattata, pidgey, or a bellsprout," added Miranda reminiscently.

"That's an odd combination. And um, 'Lav'Brat'?"

Miranda smiled reminiscently, giving Misty a sideways glance. "That's what we started calling ourselves," she explained, shaking her head at the thought, "Well, usually it's 'Lavender Brats.' I can't even remember who started it originally, but last time I checked new generations of trainers from Lavender started using the term. It's both flattering and disturbing!"

"It must be interesting to be from a small town like that," chuckled Misty, giving Miranda a playful nudge, "I'll bet it's really hard to keep secrets there too."

"Painfully!" agreed Miranda with a laugh, "Infact, Lavender's so small, that my aunt's our town's pokemon professor."

"Wow," commented Misty, looking up at Miranda with a touch of awe, "That must have its advantages."

"Oh, sure," chuckled Miranda, "If you don't mind being a guinea pig now and then."

"She didn't make you spend the night in the Tower, did she?" inquired Misty in a nervous tone as several people walked out onto the small platform at the water's edge and began releasing pokemon in the lake.

"Goodness no!" cringed Miranda, the Lav'Brat's tone serious as her complexion paled a little, "No one's THAT crazy! Well, maybe Zack... Oh, I see the show's about to begin."

Misty turned in time to see a smiling woman with long, dark green hair that was giving way to gray and emerald green eyes, partially hidden by glasses so huge they made Miranda's seem small by comparison, step out onto the stage. "Hi all!" she called out enthusiastically, waving to the group of mostly families who had assembled in the bleachers as the wind blew the hem of the long dark green dress she wore under her official looking lab coat, "My name's Professor Myria, and this-" the woman tossed a pokeball into the water, releasing a an ancient looking kingdra, "-is Waterstorm!"

"Hey, he evolved since last time I was here," laughed Misty over the applause to the crowd as Professor Myria tossed a fish to the suddenly very pleased looking water-type who snatched it out with his snoutful of razor sharp teeth.

"They're allot bigger than I thought they were," commented Miranda, glancing over at Misty, "I guess that means Poseidon's going to be a match for Leviathan when he grows up."

"Oh, ya!" laughed Misty, her sea green eyes reflecting future victories, "I'm going to show the world just what water pokemon are capable of. Just you wait!"

Miranda put her arm around Misty, giving her half a hug. "For forever and a day," she promised as Professor Myria stopped mid-  
sentence and glanced at her watch.

"Hey," she commented, sounding a little annoyed as she glanced out over the lake, her voice echoing as the hidden microphone caught every word she said, "They should be here by now..."

"'They?' inquired Miranda, glancing at Misty who suddenly covered her face in her hands and shook her head.

"I should have known..." the trainer muttered, "It's like an ancient Egyptian curse!"

"Say wha-?" began Miranda, looking in the direction of the lake as a huge volume of water was rapidly displaced by large object rising out of it, "They aren't-? That isn't-?"

Misty only nodded, not even bothering to look as a huge mechanical tentacruel cast a long dark shadow over Professor Myria and Waterstorm. In response the woman, who had been standing with her arms crossed and her foot tapping impatiently sighed heavily and lifted her arms above her head with a bored look upon her face. 

"Alright, already," she muttered bitterly as the four of five people in the crowd who began to panic were settled down by those who had started laughing, and two huge tentacles came down to wrap around the woman and her pokemon, "Let's get this fiasco over with!"

"Get this over with!" came a trio of voices, the sound echoing strangely from within the metal monster, "Whatever do you mean?"

Myria sighed heavily, once more folding her arms and looking bored out of her tree as Waterstorm yawned widely and swished his scaly tail idly. "Every year it's the same old thing," she chided, seemingly oblivious to the fact that she was suspended a dangerous distance above the ground, "You guys build some new contraption that's supposed to be a pathetic attempt to resemble a water pokemon, and you march in here expecting all of us to just hand over our pokemon. Like some how the concept of being horribly out numbered means nothing to you! As if being surrounded by Pokeforce Officers wasn't a criminal deterrent-!"

"You know," interrupted a male voice as small hatch on top of the giant tentacruel opened and familiar looking figure popped out, "I think she's right."

"So what James?" exclaimed an equally familiar woman with long red hair, "This is more than just our responsibility to our organization!"

"It's a tradition!" added Meowth as he popped up between the two, "And you have to admit that last year's 'contraption' wasn't that half-bad."

"I suppose," agreed Myria hesitantly, "But kinglers are supposed to walk sideways. I don't really think that it was realistic to have it run forward like that."

"Hey, we're villains!" defended Jessie, as Waterstorm nodded in agreement with his trainer, equally serene despite their situation, "We don't have to follow the rules!"

Myria opened one eye and gave the trio a sideways glance. "And what about the dewgong?" she inquired with a hint of a smirk, "Or the starmie that couldn't stand and fell flat on its face? Or the-  
"Alright! Alright!" the trio exclaimed, covering their ears and crying, "We admit it, we're no good at this!"

"Maybe we should start paying you morons to show up and get your butts kicked," Professor Myria commented as she and her pokemon were put back down, "It couldn't hurt the show. Might even bring in a few more people."

"Hmm, that's an interesting thought," pondered James as Jessie smacked him hard on top of the head.

"Forget about!" she growled, pulling out a remote control that started the tentacles flailing about threateningly, "Team Rocket doesn't do legitimate business! We're a crime syndicate, we should start acting like one!"

"But Jessie," continued James, grabbing the remote as well and trying to pull it away from his partner, "Don't you remember what Professor Vlad said?"

"The illegal gambling is just a front?" offered Meow, "The real money's in the dry cleaning?"

"I don't care!" yelled Jessie, planting a foot against James' chest and yanking at the remote with both hands for all she was worth.

"Okay that's enough," commented Myria, with only mild amusement, "Waterstorm, blizzard attack."

"Wow! I'll bet Umi could learn that," commented Miranda thoughtfully as the enormous draconic seahorse turned his long snout to face the mechanical tentacruel and let loose with swirling blast of what appeared to be snow and hail, accompanied by a howling wind, "But I think I'd call it 'Cone Of Cold'."

"Hey!" complained Misty as she peeked out between her fingers, "Why didn't you tell me they were using a tentacruel this year?"

"They do this every year?" asked Miranda, smiling in bemusement as she watched the swirling blast of Winter's might spread outwards in an ever increasing area until it enveloped most of the mechanical pokemon causing most of the surrounding water to freeze solid around it.

"Every year for the last five," assured Misty as several uniformed Pokeforce Officers on jet skis sped onto the scene, lead by an Officer Jenny who seemed oblivious to the chill even though her uniform consisted of her hat and uniform jacket over a dark blue one-piece bathing suit, "Fortunately, though, I've managed to miss most of them."

"Well, that about wraps that up," laughed Myria, turning back to the crowd as the Pokeforce officers tossed out ropes with grappling hooks on the ends that caught hold of the small ice-flow before towing the three wannabe criminals and their mechanical tentacruel off into open water.

"Close, but not quite!" called Meowth, laughing as he pulled out a second remote and hit the overly large red button that took up most of it.

Within an instant, a second hatch opened and a huge balloon had inflated. There was a loud mechanical -clank!- and part of the tentacruel's head detached, taking the three Rocket's with it.

"Sorry!" the three called down laughing, "But not today!"

"They'll be back," shrugged Misty warily, "They always are..."

Chapter VIII

After Professor Myria's somewhat energetic discussion on water pokemon, and a few rather breath-taking performances, Misty and Miranda hurriedly made their way the relatively short distance to the poetry contest area.

A surprisingly large crowd had assembled around the little wooden stage, and despite arriving a bit late; Miranda had no problem adding her name to the list of eight other contestants. The broadly grinning, elderly man at the sign up booth was more than happy to add her in at the last minute however. The two then made their way through the crowd, and found a relatively open area near the stage in which to stand and watch the competition.

"Nervous?" whispered Misty as the first contestant, finished his poem and left the stage to thunderous applause.

"A bit," admitted Miranda, digging out her scarred poetry book, "But I don't mind not winning. It's your opinion that matters, not a panel of judges."

Misty smiled, clinging to Miranda's arm again and resting her head on the courier's shoulder. "Thanks," she said, her face becoming flushed, "And it'll be nice to finally hear this mysterious poem of yours."

"Well, let's just say I almost thought about entering another one," Miranda replied, taking her turn at blushing, "But that one was a bit too personal."

"Oooh! Sounds scandalous!" teased Misty, glancing up at Miranda with a mischievous smile, "You'd better not keep that one a secret much longer."

"Oh, I won't," she promised at the second contestant began to read aloud..."

Miranda felt Misty's hand tighten up one own as the applause died and the contest spokesman came back on stage and thanked the previous contestant. "Alright, our next contestant hails from Lavender Town," announced the old man from the signup booth, who turned out to be the festival coordinator, reading off the small cue card he held in his hand, "Her name is Miranda, and her poem is entitled, 'Shattered Temptations'. M'Lady?"

The courier looked up at the man and met his all to knowing smile. "I'm here!" she called from the crowd, causing him to nod and make way for her.

"Good luck," offered Misty as Miranda turned to face her.

"So long as I spend tonight with you, a loss here means nothing," assured Miranda, catching a glimpse of something familiar out of the corner of her eye, "But I promise to do my best."

"You'd better-!" chuckled Misty, caught momentarily off balance as Miranda placed a hand upon the small of her back and leaned her lover back a bit, before kissing her with all the passion she could muster.

"Have I ever broken a promise to you?" inquired Miranda, pulling away slowly, and leaving Misty breathless as a few people in the crowd made 'awww...' noises.

"Never," whispered Misty, gasping for breath as her eyes mirrored her lover's passion, "Show them how it's done, Miri dear."

Miranda smiled uncontrollably as she backed reluctantly away. "We'll talk," she promised, turning towards the stage and sprinting off as the on lookers applauded.

"Glad to see you have all the time in the world," chuckled the festival coordinator mirthfully on stage, making Miranda blush as she met his all too firm handshake and glanced at Misty, "I just wanted the extra luck."

The man chuckled, shaking his head in amused dismay as he left the stage, and Miranda glanced to the left as she stepped up to the mike. Sure enough, the courier caught a second glimpse of the figure she'd caught out of the corner of her eye earlier.

Standing a short distance away from the stage and off to one side was the sullen, bitter looking figure of Ash. The trainer caught Miranda's gaze and his dark eyes narrowed. 'So you were watching us,' thought Miranda smugly, 'Good.'

"Hello, Cerulean City," said the woman with her patented 'dealing with the public' smile as she adjusted the microphone stand to her height, "Today I'd like to read you something I wrote over dinner last night. Which I suppose is ironic considering the first prize today."

Several people in the crowd chuckled as Miranda opened the nearly tome sized black book she carried and opened it to the half way mark. 'Actually,' she mused, adjusting her glasses for effect, 'I memorized it, and haven't had time to write it down in here. But there's no reason to tell you all that...'

"Anyway," said Miranda, taking a deep breath to dispel the nervousness she felt well up inside her, "it's a little something I whipped up the other day. I hope you like it..."

As she read, Miranda tilted her head down, simulating actually having to read from the book, but all the while, her eyes peered over her glasses at Misty, who stood quietly in the crowd staring back. A small smile creeping across her face as Miranda read...

"These temptations mean less than nothing to me, when I think of how your heart would break,  
The finest of treasures laid out before me, all turn to dust when I imagine your tears,  
For of all the gifts that I have been offered, your kisses are the only ones that I dream of,  
And with every moment of false passion that I reject, I hope to alleviate another of your fears..."

For a second, Miranda glanced out at the rest of the onlookers, trying to gauge their reactions. Most seemed fairly intent on listening, but a few had seemed distracted by something, and were muttering irately...

"My loyalty to you is unquestionable; as sure as the sun rises every morning,  
You are all that matters, and you shall find me in your arms every night,  
No one else shall I allow to compromise my virtue, no other is afforded that privilege,  
And only your wish to be rid of me, shall ever banish this one from your sight..."

Miranda's eyes panned back towards Misty, nearly choking on her words as she caught sight of something that made her scowl a little. Not far from the front of the stage, and far too close to Misty for Miranda's comfort stood Ash. He was silent, at least, but it was obvious that he'd butted through the crowd to get so close to the stage. Fortunately, though, he seemed content to glare up at her contemptuously...

"So please worry not my dear, for your happiness is all my all consuming need,  
You are the only one that I could ever want, my heart's greatest desire,  
No mere mortal could ever tear me away, especially those whose beauty is but an empty shell,  
For only your undying love, could ever hope to quench this all-  
consuming fire..."

Miranda took a deep breath as the last syllable fell past her lips, closing her eyes for a moment to compose herself and focus. "That's it," she quietly told the crowd, most of whom cheered enthusiastically.

"Thank you Miss!" called the festival coordinator, clapping as he walked back over to Miranda with his stack of cards.

"No problem," said Miranda with a bit of a smile, covering the mike as she spoke to the man, "It just comes naturally to me."

The man nodded, smiling as he always did, showing off his perfectly straight white teeth. "Well, then you should have no problem out doing our next contestant," he replied with a bit of a laugh, turning his attention to the crowd, knowing Miranda could dismiss herself.

"Well, that was fun," commented Miranda as Misty leaped into her arms the instant the woman had both feet upon the ground.

"It was wonderful," said Misty, happy tears forming in her eyes as she hugged Miranda.

"Just like you," assured the courier, leaning down to kiss Misty and missing the next poet's name and point of origin.

"I keep telling you," warned Misty in an amused tone, "I'm going to get a huge ego if you keep that up."

"No, not to worry," replied Miranda with a smile, moving out of the way to let a tall, scruffy looking man with dark glasses and bluish hair make his way nervously up the stairs, "I'll be sure to compliment you in moderation."

"Good," responded Misty with a quick kiss before looking to one side to check out the competition, "'cause I wouldn't want to wind up like my sisters."

"Sensational?" chuckled Miranda, moving to one side and taking Misty's hand so they could both watch and listen.

Misty gave her a sideways glance and tried not to laugh. "That's worthy of Nezumi," she whispered before glancing at the stage and biting off a curse.

"What's wrong?" inquired Miranda, eying the contestant suspiciously, but not really seeing anything peculiar about him. His clothes seemed rather worn, and he hadn't shaved in several days, but the traveler seemed normal enough.

"I'm positive I know him," responded Misty, giving Miranda's hand a warning squeeze that put the woman on the defensive.

The festival coordinator stepped aside as the rather haggard looking fellow staggered up to the mike. "Howdy, y'all," he addressed the crowd as Miranda put her book away and gave her arm a gentle shake, causing a mirconized pokeball to fall into her hand, "You'll have to forgive my appearance, but it's been a long walk from Celadon."

"He must have signed up just in time," Miranda commented, glancing at Misty's worried expression as the man spoke.

Meanwhile, the crowd gave a sympathetic murmur as he reached into his dusty gray trench coat and pulled out a rolled up piece of paper. "This one's kinda old," he told them, pulling his pants up a little higher, wishing that the rope that served as a belt was a bit tighter, "But it has meaning. Especially to my closest friends."

Again the sympathetic crowd gave an "awww...", but as Miranda glanced around to find Ash again, this time she noticed he wasn't paying attention to the poet on stage. The bitter trainer was talking to his pikachu and the pokemon didn't seem too happy about the conversation.

"It's simply called 'I need you'," continued the man on stage, his thick hickish accent wavering a little as he spoke and unrolled the paper, "I 'ope that some of ya all can get somethin' from it..."

"The light in my universe seems to vanish every time you slip through my fingers,  
The sun, the moon, the stars, what purpose do these serve without you in my life?  
Why can't you just see that it's better this way?  
With you on my side, there'd be an end to this daily strife..."

The mysterious man read the words slowly, his voice quiet for the moment, but rising in tone as he poured his heart out into it. The crowd could see his pain, even through the dark glasses, in the way his voice quavered and his expression became even more haggard, causing several people shake their heads in wonder at the tortured soul's deep sadness...

"It seems as though not a day passes that our two sides do not clash,  
Every week that passes only seems to bring more pain,  
Wedging this rift between us ever wider until I can barely heard your voice,  
And this longing just to hold you, is driving me nearly insane..."

There were tears in his eyes now, and the man wiped them away as he read, not bothering to move his shades out of the way. But as he came closer to the end, the stranger reached inside his coat with his free hand, clutching something as he eyed someone in the crowd...

"So next time we meet upon the field of battle,  
Please listen to these words that I say to you,  
So that never again shall I have to beg, grovel and plead,  
For some little twerp to hand over that pikachu..!"

With that, the man tore his loose fitting garments from his body, revealing his light gray uniform with a large red "R" stenciled across the chest, and leapt off the stage in the direction of Ash and Pikachu.

"I knew it," replied Misty sullenly under her breath, shaking her head in dismay as James dove into the crowd, only to have them run back in time to have him fall flat on his face.

"Oh, it's only him again," responded Miranda with a vague sense of disappointment, glancing at the purple and white pokeball in her hand and suddenly wondering why she'd bothered, only to have a sudden thought strike her like a ton of bricks.

"Pathetic!" laughed Ash a short distance away, "Pikachu! Thunder-  
shock!"

"Dreck!" cursed Miranda, hearing Misty's quick intake of breath.

"It's alright," assured Misty, keeping her voice level as James screamed and someone blew a loud whistle, "I'm fine."

"Good," said Miranda sincerely, letting go of Misty's hand and grabbing up her book, a sudden inner turmoil brewing behind her eyes.

"What's wrong?" inquired Misty, trying to keep from looking in Ash's direction.

"Last time we saw him, he was helping Kathy get away," replied Miranda after taking a deep breath and centering herself, "So now I'd like to ask him a few questions. Assuming that's okay with you...?"

Misty nodded and reached up to run her hand down Miranda's cheek. "I understand," she said, not bothering to compete with the sudden noise of the crowd, "Come on; there won't be much left of him in a moment. And James is too pathetic a villain to give Ash the satisfaction of electrocuting him to death."

Miranda smiled in spite of herself. "Oh, and I'm sorry," she replied as they pushed their way through a wall of gawkers.

"What for?" shouted Misty, following in Miranda's wake.

"For not telling you 'he' was here."

"That's alright," assured Misty catching a glimpse of two Pokeforce Officers that broke through at the opposite end of the circular clearing that had formed.

"Thanks," said Miranda, smiling as she caught Misty's eye for a moment before cringing at Officer Jenny's gravelly sounding voice reminiscent of someone grinding their teeth in their sleep.

"Hold on!" the woman shouted over the all the noise, "You there, leave him alone or I'll have you and your pokemon brought in for assault!" "But he tried to steal my-!" began Ash as Pikachu flopped down, exhausted from the exertion.

"Quiet, you!" ordered Jenny, before glancing down at James with a sympathetic look, "Are you alright, sir?"

James looked up at the woman as a cunning smile crossed his lips. "I will be in a moment, Officer," he chuckled, staggering to his feet and raising his fist dramatically.

"Wow," laughed Ash as James's smile began to fade, "Looks like you've been thunder-shocked so often, you're immune!"

"What? Where are they?" demanded James, glancing around helplessly, "Meowth? Jessie?"

"What seems to be the problem here?" inquired the second cop, walking up behind Jenny, followed by a growlithe.

"It's him, actually," called the festival coordinator from the stage, pointing a shaking hand at James, "he tried to steal that poor guy's pikachu!"

"I see," the cop pondered, rubbing his stubbly chin thoughtfully as his growlithe tossed her rather lacy looking fur out of her eyes and began sniffing at James.

"But this one still used a pokemon to assault and unarmed human, Frank," added Jenny, grabbing Ash by arm and making him cry out in protest as she tried to cuff him.

James meanwhile, turned in a slow circle, a helpless look of complete hopelessness crossing his face. "Jessie?" he pleaded to the crowd, "Meowth? Any one...?"

"Looks to me like the pikachu acted on instinct," replied Officer Frank, catching James off guard as he grabbed his wrists and yanked them painfully behind his back, "I say let the other one go with a warning."

"I don't know..." muttered Jenny, shaking her head as Ash tried to look innocent.

"They were supposed to back me up..." muttered James sadly, looking up in time to see Misty and Miranda approaching. As he met Miranda's gaze, the man turned pale and spun around, falling to his knees and pleading, "It was me! It was all me! Please Mr. Pokeforce Officer, toss me in jail and throw away the key! Just keep me away from- From her!"

"Say what?" inquired Frank, turning back to James as his growlithe let out a low growl and sparks danced across her pearly white fangs.

"Uncle Frank?" inquired Miranda, her tense stance relaxing as the anger she'd been prepared to unleash all but vanishing as she looked at the Pokeforce officer in amazement.

Officer Frank forgot about James for a moment, accidentally kicking the poor man in the side as he ran towards her. "I don't believe it!" he laughed as he ran into the courier's arms, "Little Miri, so far from home!"

"Oh, ha, ha!" countered Miranda, laughing joyfully as Frank lifted her off the ground and spun his niece around before letting her go, "You knew I'd be a member of the Courier Crew since I was little girl! But I didn't know about you..."

Officer Frank gave a sarcastic grin that would make Nezumi envious and took a step back, dramatically motioning to his badge. "Would you believe they let ME carry a gun? Heck, I even get my own car! Pretty cool, eh?" he laughed before spotting Misty for the first time, "Oh hello! Friend of yours, kid?"

"Kid?" inquired Miranda with mock severity, staring at her uncle over her glasses as Jenny shook her head and walked over to the frightened looking James.

"Hi, I'm Misty," said the trainer, holding out her hand with her warmest smile, only to withdraw it as a warning growl filled her ears, "Oh, sorry."

The three glanced down at the growlithe at Frank's feet. "Don't worry," the cop assured Misty, crouching down to scratch the dog behind the ears, "Bow's just in 'on duty' mode. She actually loves people."

"Really?" inquired Misty, leaning forward with her hands on her knees, and turning her head to one side as she glanced at the growlithe, "Are you actually friendly behind all that growling?"

"She's a friend," said Frank, glancing at Miranda who gave a quick nod, "You can relax, Bow."

The growlithe looked at Frank for a moment, but seemed satisfied and began sniffing at the air between herself and Misty a somewhat cautiously.

"So, who died and made you the law here?" teased Miranda, turning her attention back to Frank, her eyes gleaming with the man's infectious amusement.

Her uncle chuckled as his fingers brushed back his bushing brown hair, revealing his graying roots. "Keeps me out of trouble, I guess," he told her without looking up.

"And why didn't you stay in Lavender town?" she continued somewhat accusingly, "If you wanted to be a cop, you could have at least come home!"

Frank's smile faded as his growlithe gave in to Misty's charm and let herself be petted. "It's a long story, Miranda," he replied in a serious tone that his niece never knew he had, "I, I just didn't want Bob to feel threatened or anything. That and your not the only one who wants to avenge your father's death you know... That and things were getting a bit weird with your aunt."

Miranda gave him a serious look, pushing down the feelings his words sparked and nodding sagely. "I see," she said simply, folding her arms as she spoke, knowing the Officer was full of it, "Well, this probably isn't the time for this. And to answer you're question, Uncle, this is Misty..."

Frank's smile made a small showing as his niece turned away, looking a little embarrassed. "Now who's hiding something?" he teased, glancing down at Bow and shaking his head in wary amusement. "That's it," he warned Misty, "You've just made a friend for life. You're doomed! Doomed I tell you! Dooooomed!"

Misty glanced up, laughing as she crouched down to scratch Bow behind the left ear. "Why's that?" she inquired as Bow went slack jawed for a moment.

Frank chuckled and caught the growlithe's contented gaze. "For some reason," he explained, "Bow can't quite reach that spot. So just be careful or someone will make you a Pokeforce officer!"

"Oh?" inquired Miranda, happy for a change in topic, "Is that how it happened?"

Frank shook his head in dismay. "Well, not really," he admitted, "But she's what clinched it for me. Isn't that right?"

The pyrotechnic canine glanced up at her trainer and showed a mouthful of teeth in an approximation of a smile, making the trio of human's laugh. "So," said Frank, crouching down as Bow walked lazily over to him and sat down on his feet possessively, "What brings you both to Cerulean?"

"The festival," replied Misty with a shrug.

"My job," added Miranda, glancing at the pokeball she'd forgotten to put away.

"My family," finished Misty as Miranda set the pokeball down at Bow's feet.

"Ah, I see," commented Frank, pondering for a moment, "Oh yeah, I suppose they should meet, eh."

Bow looked up at Frank curiously. "Growlithe?" she inquired before sniffing at the pokeball and yelping loudly as it activated.

"Bow, meet Umi-," began Frank, suddenly startled as a rattata appeared, "Okay, maybe not..."

Miranda chuckled as Nezumi yawned, looked around warily and then yelped as he spotted the relatively huge ball of red and white fur that stood over him. "Ratta!" he exclaimed, scampering behind Miranda's legs, and making Bow bark excitedly.

"Don't eat him," warned Frank, "I'm sure Miranda'd be upset!"

"Better believe it," the woman chuckled as her pokemon stood on his hind legs and began talking almost too quickly for her to understand, chastising the growlithe for scaring him, "But Nezumi likes anything that has a problem with felines."

Frank chuckled. "I thought he'd be your dratini," he explained, "Still have that?"

Miranda nodded seriously and was about to reply further when a flurry of shouted words came across Frank's radio, followed by a horrific grinding, tearing sound and a dozen or so people screaming in the distance.

"Frank! Frank I need back up!" screamed Jenny's voice over the sounds of panic, and James's pleas of "Help me! He's gonna kill me! Help!"

The assembled group glanced up in time to see a flat, mostly square object fly up into the air and come crashing down into a screaming mob of tourists. "My car!" exclaimed Frank, bolting off into he direction of the brewing carnage, immediately followed by his angrily barking growlithe.

"What's that all about?" inquired Misty, standing on her toes to get a better look, but between the distance, the people in the away and the festival exhibits, it was hard to make out.

"There's only one way to find out," replied Miranda, reaching into her coat and pulling out a black and gray pokeball. "Go check it out, Wraith!" the woman ordered, tossing the ball high in the air, where it split open in its customary fashion issuing forth the gastly.

"Ga?" inquired Wraith, surprised to be so high up.

"I need you to run recon," Miranda explained, looking up at the ghost as Misty stepped behind her, "And keep a link, okay? I want to 'see' what's happening."

Wraith nodded, and after glancing in the direction of the screaming with an excited twinkle in his eye, swiveled to face his trainer. "Gasss..." he whispered, his eyes glowing for a moment before Miranda staggered back a bit and the pokemon flew off like a dark comet.

"You okay?" inquired Misty, helping Miranda to stand as the courier regained her balance.

"Yeah, I- I'll be fine," assured Miranda, sitting down on the grass and holding her head as both Misty and Nezumi gave her a concerned look, "He's just traveling so fast, and- OW! Wraith! Don't do that!"

Misty took a step back, and glanced at Nezumi. The rattata glanced over his should at her and chuckled before hopping onto Miranda's knee and looking bored. "What... What are you doing?" the girl inquired, sitting down cross-legged in front of Miranda, her look of concern deepening.

"Psychic link," replied Miranda, holding her temples and squeezing her eyes tightly closed, "A ghost's psi powers aren't as good as a true psychic's, but they'll do in a pinch... What the-! Oh no! Not HIM!"

"What! What is it!" demanded Misty, grabbing Miranda's shoulders and shaking her, "Miranda, what's wrong? You're scaring me!"

The woman shook her head as she slowly opened her eyes and spoke a single word. "Tashiro..."

Chapter IX Wraith didn't bother to turn invisible as he flew through the air, diving low now and again and phasing through people to harmlessly frighten them. 'She never said don't have any fun along the way,' the little ghost chuckled as the scene of the destruction neared, 'Ah! Here we go!'

Wraith stopped his forward momentum entirely as he reached the parking lot, soliciting an angry retort from the other end of the 'link'. "Sorry, Miranda!" he called out half-sincerely, but couldn't help laughing as several gawkers screamed and ran at the sound of "swallow your soul! Swallow your soul!" a few feet above their heads in pokespeak.

But the ghost stopped laughing when he looked up and saw what was causing the mayhem. A large, obscenely muscular bipedal reptile with a strange, helmet-ish device upon his head was tearing a wheel off an old beat-up looking pokeforce car, and was following up the motion by tossing it at a pair of humans who the onlookers seemed reluctant to go near.

"Hey!" the gastly chastised, reaching out with his mind and grabbing the wheal telekinetically, "Play fair, muscle head!"

"AHHH! A ghost!" exclaimed one of the humans, and with a sideways glance, Wraith noticed that one of the machoke's victims was already unconscious. Her aura said she'd need medical attention soon.

"Bite me!" the machoke growled in a voice that spoke volumes about his tiny reptilian brain and reached into the engine block before tearing away at the transmission.

Wraith took a moment, and turned to face the man he had frightened. "Swallow your soul! Swallow your soul!" he laughed, making the man scream and pass out.

'WRAITH!' shouted Miranda loudly in his mind.

'Sorry, ma'am,' he send back with a chuckle, 'couldn't resist!'

'Wraith,' sent Miranda again, this time her voice seemed panicked, 'Get out of there! That's Tashiro! Kathy's machoke!'

'Look Boss Lady, I'm already dead. I think that I can handle ONE little fighting-type,' Wraith chuckled back, amused by the fact that the wall of muscle he was supposed to be afraid of was ignoring him, 'I mean seriously, what can that overgrown lizard do? Kill me!'

'I'll be there soon,' was all Miranda said, and Wraith felt his mind empty once more, except for the tenuous connection they still maintained.

"Oh man! She's gonna be sooo proud of me," chuckled the little ghost, focusing his attention on the machoke as the monster tore the car's transmission free, and hefted it easily over his head.

"Oooh, this is gonna be too funny!" commented Wraith, his eyes glowing as he focused his mind, and prepared to bring forth a psychic blast his opponent wouldn't soon forget.

As Tashiro strode purposely towards the unconscious bodies of Jenny and James, Wraith let loose the focused beam of mana, targeting the machoke's walnut sized brain. But as the wave rippled out, the device upon Tashiro's head activated. Small red lights swirled around the base of the helmet, and the little antenna atop it hummed as the psychic energy was harmlessly dispersed into the surrounding area.

"What-!" hissed Wraith in aggravation as the machoke turned and smiled toothily.

"So, da little ghostie thinks he can harm Tashiro?" the pokemon chuckled, stomping heavily, leaving dents in the pavement as he went as the machoke reoriented on Wraith, "Ha. Ha. Tashiro merely laughs at your pathetic powers!"

Wraith merely laughed as the machoke tossed the transmission at him, letting the device pass right through him and crash noisily into a hotdog cart. "You can't even talk in complete sentences," taunted Wraith, not noticing as Tashiro brought his now free hands together and began to focus his chi, "And now you expect to hurt me by demolishing a car? Oh, that's rich-!"

The gastly was caught off guard as Tashiro opened his palms, and a blast of kinetic energy fired forth, catching him between the eyes, and punching a fist sized hole through the center of his ethereal mass.

"Wow!" exclaimed Wraith in astonishment as he filled in the hole, "That actually hurt a teeny tiny bit! NOT!"

"Almost as much as this will!" promised Tashiro, running forward with one of his fists crackling with electricity.

"Oooh, ya!" chuckled Wraith with a humor he suddenly didn't feel, "This is bad!"

The little ghost willed himself invisible, and easily slipped under the machoke's thunder punch before spinning in place and throwing another psychic blast his way. Once again, however, the energy was absorbed by Tashiro's helmet, and dissipated.

The machoke paused as his fist connected with nothing, and scanned the area for a moment. "Running will not save you," the monstrous pokemon promised, tapping a button on the side of his helmet, "Hiding will not save you..." a pair of dark spectacles came down to cover his eyes as he spoke, "Nothing can save you!"

With that, Tashiro oriented on Wraith's exact position and uppercutted the ghost with a second fist, wreathed in flames. 'Miri!' Wraith sent in mental panic as he spun end over end, up into the air and totally out of control as he tried desperately just to keep his ephemera from leaking away, 'Where are you! I need back up!'

But no response came. As Wraith righted himself several hundred feet off the ground, he tested the invisible mind link and found nothing. The device Tashiro wore not only blocked his psychic attacks, but had shut down his less offensive abilities as well.

"Allllrightyyyy then!" muttered Wraith, licking his lips as dark purple energy crackled cross the surface of his body, "Nightshade it is!"

The ghost took a second to target the device upon his opponent's head, giving Tashiro the time he needed to tear the engine fan out and pull it back as if to throw it at James like a discus, before letting the beam of visible purple hued light fly.

Once again the machoke was distracted, as the attack passed through the helmet, and enveloped his body. "Uhh," the pokemon muttered, dropping the fan and clutching his stomach with both hands, "Tashiro is not feeling so good..."

"That's the idea, lizard lips!" taunted Wraith, flying down towards his opponent, spiraling as he fired off several more blasts of ghostly purple unlight."

Tashiro gritted his teeth as he went down on one knee, the repeated ghost attacks making his stomach turn with the negative charge his body was building up. "Tashiro feel sick," he muttered, opening his now glowing red eyes so suddenly that the crowd of onlookers turned back on itself as people began running for their lives, "But it is good that I have strong stomach!"

The machoke rose slowly to his feet and turned to face the oncoming spirit with a loud roar of defiance. But the laughing ghost simply kept coming; firing repeatedly bursts into the pokemon's chest once he determined that the soulless mechanism upon his opponent's head was immune.

"This one's for Selece!" he laughed, hardly paying attention as both of Tashiro's fists lit up with suddenly focused chi. One was on fire, the other seemed surrounded by icy winds, "And this one's for Undine, and this one's for Vivian, and this one's for-! Ahh-!"

Tashiro growled incomprehensibly as he hammered both fists into Wraith's sides, the elemental effects making up for the lack of actually physical contact. In response, the ghost's body became a featureless black ooze that splattered across Tashiro's face, blinding him as his fists came together painfully.

"Argh!" the machoke cried, staggering back as he clawed at the sticky black goo that clung stubbornly to his face, "Get off, bad ghostie!"

"Ha! Not until you stop calling me that!" replied Wraith, oozing part of his body towards the device on the machoke's head as he clung tenaciously to his face.

"Foolish ghostie!" growled Tashiro, dropping to his knees and flinging his head forward.

"What are you-!" began Wraith, only to feel the front bumper of the police car pass through him, and impact painfully with Tashiro's snout.

"Wow!" the ghost laughed, as Tashiro howled in pain, "They really don't make you fighting-types like they used to!"

"I show you!" the lizard shouted, his voice muffled by the ghost on his face, and leapt to his feet, just as a confused canine voice spoke up.

"What the-!" she exclaimed, "Ah! Monster!"

"Monster?" inquired Wraith, forming eyes in the approximate location of Tashiro's just in time to see a fluffy growlithe expel a gout of flame aimed at Tashiro's head, "Oh dreck!"

Wraith phased completely, and let himself pass through Tashiro's body just as the flames washed over the machoke. He then did his best to reconstitute himself and flew in to get a closer look at the firedog.

"Criminals!" the growlithe exclaimed, spotting Wraith and firing another jet of flame at him, "Destroying my human's toy! Bad criminals! Eat my righteous burning wrath!"

"No thanks, lady!" called Wraith, arching around Tashiro's body, using the muscle bound pokemon as a shield, "I've had enough pain for one day!"

"Which one of you!" demanded the growlithe, her eyes burning with anger, "Which one did this!" She motioned to the trashed Pokeforce car with her snout, but never broke eye contact with Tashiro.

"It was him!" exclaimed both Tashiro and Wraith at the same time, causing the growlithe to howl with rage.

"Then I'm taking you both in!" she promised; leaping at Tashiro, ready to bite into him.

"No, don't lady!" warned Wraith, coming around to the front in time to see the machoke back hand the poor growlithe, "Told ya..."

Tashiro ignored Wraith for the moment, his simple mind finding it difficult to focus on too many things at once. "It fun to crush little puppies!" he chuckled, pulling back an ice-punch readied fist as the growlithe hit the ground a few feet away and tried to get her bearings.

"Look out!" called Wraith, zooming between Tashiro and the growlithe, catching the frozen fist in the side, and solidifying to keep block it's forward momentum, "Now-! Run!"

"Wow," commented the growlithe, shaking her fur back into place "Maybe you're not a bad ghost."

"Just get out of here, lady!" ordered Wraith, gritting his teeth and closing his eyes as he put all his energy into nightshading Tashiro's still painfully icy fist, "I don't know how much longer I can keep this up!"

"Not, 'Lady'," corrected the Growlithe, adjusting her stance as she focused on Tashiro's free arm, "Bow! My name is Bow!"

With that, Bow leapt into the air and sank her fangs into Tashiro's opposite wrist, filling her mouth with all the flames she could conjure. "Ah! Bad doggie! Bad ghostie!" shouted Tashiro, spinning around as quickly as he could, hoping to dislodge his attackers, "No fair, you gang up!"

"Hang on Bow!" called Wraith, feeling himself slipping as the machoke's rotation picked up speed, "Help's on its way!"

"Mrrf! Aggff!" replied Bow, unable to speak properly with a mouth full of machoke and her own scorching flames.

'Just... One... Chance..." thought Wraith, looking up at the psi-  
dampening helmet Tashiro wore, 'If only... If only I had... HANDS!'

With that, the little ghost's spherical body glowed with a brilliant white light, all but blinding the remaining spectators, who cheered as they realized what was happening.

"Huh?" managed Bow as she glanced over at the ghost, half startled as he began to grow to more than twice his former size.

"What he-!" began Tashiro, his slow mind finally catching on as real worry entered it for the first time.

At the end of his left arm, Wraith's body expanded and reshaped itself as the white light faded into nothingness. "Yesss!" hissed Wraith, staring delightedly at the two black blurs that hovered before his face, "Just what the doctor ordered!"

Tashiro's eyes went wide with horror as a pair of disembodied hands flew towards him, followed by the echoing laughter of a newly evolved haunter. "No!" he shouted in denial as one of the four-fingered hands reached under his chin and unbuckled the safety strap, as its partner flicked the helmet off his head rather nonchalantly.

"Back up!" exclaimed Wraith, vaguely hearing familiar voices shouting behind him, "They're here!"

Wraith glanced over at Bow as he dislodged himself from Tashiro's fist, thankful to be away from the painful cold and stopping himself a few feet away, not bothering to listen to the laws of physics that insisted he go flying.

"Bow?" he inquired, his good humor returning, only to see the growlithe's grip finally give way, and her go flying through the air in the manner Wraith would have had he been mortal.

"Noooo!" shouted Wraith, his eyes glowing a burning red as he reached out with his mind, and snatched the flying firedog out of the air with telekinesis. The ghost then turned his attention to Tashiro, a malevolent grin crossing his face as he set the disoriented growlithe down on the ground.

"That..." he growled angrily as the machoke stopped spinning and clutched his face in an attempt to steady himself, "Was a MISTAKE!"

Tashiro barely had time to give the suddenly larger ghost a puzzled look before the wave of dark mana struck him. The machoke's eyes went wide, and he struggled for breath as his brain suffered a small aneurysm before toppling over and leaving machoke shaped crater in the pavement...

Miranda was the first to force herself through the wall of assembled onlookers, and gasped as the growlithe flew towards her only to be caught in mid air by Wraith's psychic grasp.

"Wraith, dear...?" the woman stammered, feeling her anxiety over the severed connection between them abate as she spotted what was now her haunter, "You evolved!"

The ghost seemed not to notice his trainer, however. His concentration was focused solely on the stunned Tashiro, and Wraith's eyes were glowing brightly as he readied an attack.

"What's he doing?" inquired Misty, breaking through the crowd just behind Frank as Bow was set carefully down on the ground.

"I renamed it 'mana bolt'," explained Miranda, folding her arms and watching her ghostly pokemon's actions intently, "But most people just call it 'psi-beam'."

Misty gasped as Tashiro's expression became pained, and he toppled over with a loud thud that shattered the pavement. "Ouch!" she commented as Bow waddled over to Frank.

"Groooow..." the little growlithe whined, staggering from side to side as her trainer crouched down to pick her up.

"It's okay," he told her, just before noticing his car, "You did well, girl- What the-! My car!"

"Not so fast, Detective," chuckled a smug voice, stopping Frank dead in his tracks as he saw two figures daring to stand upon the roof of what was left of his car, "Tashiro! Return!"

"Who-?" began Frank, shielding his eyes from the sun as he heard his niece curse just behind him.

"Kathy," the courier hissed, recognizing the voice immediately, even though her features seemed unfamiliar, glowering as the older woman hopped to the ground and chuckled quietly in dark amusement.  
"So glad that you remember me," the scientist replied with a cruel smile, "Even with this little disguise I cooked up recently."

"The pleasure is all yours," muttered Miranda, reaching to her side and gripping the hilt of her bokken, as Kathy's skin seemed to flow across the surface of her face like water.  
"You know," she said casually, an evil smirk crossing her face as her features altered and became more familiar, "If I'd had this power a decade or so ago, I wouldn't have needed to kill your father. Not that I wouldn't have or anything..."

"You'll pay for that!" growled Frank, forgetting about his car for a moment, and awkwardly reaching for his gun.

"Get in line, Uncle!" said Miranda, drawing her wooden sword as she took a half step backward, spinning the weapon over her wrist before aiming it at Kathy.

"What are you!" growled Frank, his pistol held at arms length as he crouched, holding his growlithe the awkwardly, but protectively, "Cause it sure as the Tower ain't human anymore!"

Kathy gave a chuckling sigh, and spread her arms as the figure that had appeared beside her leapt the ground, revealing itself to be a female alakazam. "Oh, this?" the woman inquired, pointing to her face, "A simple enough trick. It's amazing what you can accomplish if you're willing to sacrifice a few hundred dittos in the name of science."

"Don't you mean murder?" corrected Misty running to Miranda's side with a pokeball in hand as the woman raised her sword to eye level, its 'sharp' end pointed up, its business end facing her opponent's eye level.

"Whatever. It's not like hundreds of thousands of rattata don't die in medical research every year or anything," said Kathy with an offhanded shrug, having no patience of semantics, "besides, at least now I can change myself and get into a new position at Sylph Co. Hopefully without sleeping with Balthaza'ar Iago again... Yeesh!"

"You..." growled Miranda, her body tensing as she poised herself to strike, "You can change your face as many times as you like. But you will always have my father's blood upon your hands!"

With an incoherent cry, Miranda charged her nemesis, swinging her bokken down and up in a wide arc. In response to the attack, the alakazam crossed her spoons before her, and with a shout of "Al'zam!" followed by a loud -POP!- the two teleported, vanishing just as Miranda's sword sliced through the air Kathy had occupied, rebounding off the bumper of Frank's car.

"Nooo!" the courier exclaimed, almost loosing her footing as her sword rebounded and she staggered backwards, "Not again..."

"Miranda!" shouted both Frank and Misty as the courier slumped to the ground and both her friends ran to her side.

"I don't believe this..." she muttered, not really hearing the sudden footsteps race towards her, and barely feeling the hands that touched her shoulders sympathetically as her sword clattered to the ground.

"Miri," whispered Misty, crying as she saw the look of defeat in Miranda's eyes.

Frank opened his mouth to speak, but glanced at Misty and understood. "Come on," he told Bow, "Let's issue some crowd control. If you're up for it, that is."

Bow slipped from his arms and glanced at Miranda concernedly before nodding and running excitedly towards the crowd of people who seemed to believe it was safe to draw closer.

"Alright, people!" called Frank, waving his arms authoritatively as Bow barked at them, "Show's over. There's a park full of fun things to do that beat standing around gawking! Let's go! Oops-!"

With those two simply words, Bow's attention locked on Frank. Her eyes going wide with glee as she was filled with a sudden rush of joy and excitement. But as she glanced at the car, the growlithe's tail fell and her ears went back. Bow then glared at the crowed with all the menace she could muster and growled with all the supernatural intimation a pokemon could muster. Everything about the firedog's stance seeming to scream, "How dare you take away my chance to go for a ride in the car?"

Frank merely smiled and nodded. "Yup, yup..." he sighed, shaking his head in amusement, "That's why I love her..."

Nezumi finally managed to scurry between the last few humans that threatened to unwittingly step on him, and stood panting at the edge of the crowd. "Just my luck," he muttered, standing on his hind legs and holding his stomach as he surveyed the carnage, "Missed it!"

"Hey! Nezzy!" exclaimed a familiar, yet somehow different sounding voice, causing the rattata to do a double take, and almost run for his life as the dark shape of a haunter materialized before him, "Where've ya been pal?"

"Wraith?" the exhausted pokemon inquired, taking a step back from the haunter, sniffing the air between them, "Hey! It is you, ain't it?"

"Hey," chuckled Wraith, waving a finger warningly, "That's 'Fang Face' to you! Although I guess you can't call me that anymore..."

Nezumi smiled, a mischievous gleam in his eye. "Hey," he said reassuringly, "You'll always been 'Fang Face' to me!"

Wraith clapped his hands together, ethereal tears forming in his eyes. "Really?" he inquired with joyful sadness.

"Really," assured Nezumi, "Now give us a hug, bro!"

"Ah, thanks!" exclaimed Wraith, grabbing Nezumi up and holding the rattata against himself affectionately, "That means a lot to me!"

"Is this a warm moment?" inquired Bow as she walked over to the two pokemon with a look of complete befuddlement, "Or should I be disturbed?"

"Hey! It's the pyro-puppy!" exclaimed Nezumi, hopping down and smiling broadly up at the growlithe, "Have you met Fang- Err, Wraith yet?"

"Yeah," replied Bow shyly, "We met. He's pretty tough for a ghost..."

Wraith smiled and chuckled secretively. "Well ya know," he said shyly, "I used to be a growlithe... Back in my breathing days."

"Hey!" exclaimed Nezumi, turning towards the ghost with a look of betrayal, "I thought you said you was a rat!"

"Um, guys," interrupted Bow, "I hate to bother you, but your trainer looks really unhappy about something... Which reminds me! The car! Oh my goodness, the car...!"

"Shh, it's okay," whispered Misty, her arms around Miranda as they knelt in the parking lot, Miranda's head upon her friend's shoulder.

"I wish it was," responded Miranda, holding onto Misty as though she were drowning, "But I had her. She was right there, and I... I just feel like I let my parents down today."

"Hey," said Misty, taking the courier's chin and tilting her head up, "You tried your best. Heck, your pokemon not only beat the tar out of Tashiro, but he evolved! Look."

Miranda glanced over her shoulder and smiled in spite of herself. Nezumi and Wraith were walking/hovering over to her. Both pokemon seemed concerned, but Wraith had a certain smug satisfaction lurking behind his dark eyes.

"They don't think you let anyone down," continued Misty, trying not to look at the haunter too much, "They love you, and so do I. We don't think this is a failure, we think this is a victory."

Miranda nodded, smiling motherly at her pokemon who immediately started yammering excitedly at her. "Whoa! Hold on," she told them, suddenly focusing in on Wraith, "What's this about Jenny and James?"

The haunter turned and pointed to the two incapacitated bodies, currently lying prone between two parked cars. "Oh, man," commented Miranda, turning to her uncle and calling out as loudly as she could, "Uncle Frank! Over there!"

Frank turned to his niece, following her outstretched arm and immediately running over to the downed officer. "Oh man!" he muttered, pulling out his radio, "That poke' beaned her with my carburetor!"

"Is there anything we can do?" inquired Misty, looking concernedly at her hometown's Officer Jenny.

Frank shook his head as he finally got a hold of dispatch. "No, you guys just head on back to the festival for now," he explained warily, trying to sound like an actual cop, "The fun's over, but I'd like to see you both again once I get this mess cleaned up."

"Gotcha," replied Miranda, sliding her hand over Misty's and leading her away from the parking lot.

"Do you think they'll make it?" asked Misty, glancing over her shoulder to where Officer Frank was shouting into his radio, and only James's feet could be seen sticking out between two parked cars.

Miranda nodded as she gave a few of the lingering gawkers a dirty look. "I believe so," she assured, pausing to let Nezumi clamber up her leg to find her jacket pocket, "Jenny's are a lot tougher than they look, and I think that James guy just fainted."

"I hope you're right," her beloved replied uncertainly, ducking as Wraith zoomed past, over their heads before turning to face the humans with an hopeful look.

Miranda used her free hand to grab his pokeball and return Wraith before turning to face Misty. "You really care about people, don't you?" the woman asked, rhetorically as her arms slid around Misty's torso.

Misty nodded sadly, leaning against Miranda with her head on her shoulder. "It just bothers me to see people get hurt that badly," she explained somewhat distantly, "Sure, I'm a trainer, I know that getting your pokemon and occasionally yourself knocked around is par for the course, but..."

Miranda brought up her hand and gently ran her fingers through Misty's hair affectionately as she spoke. "But this was different," she surmised.

"Yes," said Misty quietly with a nod, "I don't know if it's just that I've never really seen someone that badly hurt before, or if it's just because of who did that to her. I dunno, maybe that's it. Maybe I'm just picking up on your sorrow. I guess I just don't like the thought of you getting hurt again."

Miranda smiled, resting her cheek against Misty's hair and breathing in her scent, holding her lover ever closer in as if in an attempt to assure herself that Misty was real. "Careful," she whispered softly in a teasing tone, "I might get the idea into my head that you love me or something."

Misty found a smile crossing her lips of its accord. "Yeah," she agreed, sighing contentedly, "I should be careful about that. I wouldn't want there to be any harsh misunderstandings."

"But seriously," continued Miranda, after trying unsuccessfully not to chuckle, "I think I like you're compassionate side. I've known for quite a while that you hated to see pokemon abused, but I didn't realize how much it applied to humans."

Misty pulled her head back, forcing Miranda to meet her gaze. "But I think that it helped me fall in love with you," she explained, her hands coming together and resting against the small of Miranda's back, "You shared your pain with a complete stranger. You weren't afraid to be completely vulnerable, and it was such a nice change from certain people's constant macho posturings. It was a pleasant change to see someone so strong not being afraid to show weakness..."

Miranda closed her eyes, smiling with a touch of embarrassment as Misty spoke. "Strange how that worked out," the courier mused, opening her eyes just enough to see her love echoed in Misty's, "We both fell in love with someone who's both strong and weak at the same time. But I really don't see compassion as a weakness, my dear. It's just another reason to love you."

Misty leaned her forehead against Miranda's shoulder to hide her embarrassed smile and took a deep breath to push her sudden rush of emotion down to a manageable level. "And to be honest," she added, struggling to find just the right words, "Sometimes it's nice to be able to be able comfort you. Maybe I'm being selfish, but it makes me feel wanted and needed-"

"No," interrupted Miranda, barely noticing the passers by any longer, "It's not selfish, at least not in a bad way. And you are needed, and wanted. More than I can say just now. Maybe in a hundred years I'll have composed enough words to express my feelings for you in full, but yes, Misty, I do need you. I do want you, and I do love you. And there's no one else in the world that I want to have comfort me. Don't worry, and don't feel guilty. It shall always be your shoulder that my tears fall upon."

Misty sighed heavily, leaning against Miranda as the words filtered through her mind. The woman's love for her still astounding the small doubtful part of Misty that refused to believe that anyone could truly care for her that much. 'This woman,' she thought wistfully, 'Is she compensation for all I've gone through? Or am I hers? No matter...'

"Then I hope you don't succeed, Miri, my love," responded Misty, lifting her head and placing a soft kiss upon Miranda's surprised lips, "Because if you don't find all the words you need in a hundred years, it means that you'll need another hundred to find them. And that gives me an extra century in which to love you."

Miranda stood quietly for a moment; simply staring down at Misty, marveling at the fact that such a perfect creature could exist, that she could find herself so in sync with another human being. 'Is is for real? Is this more than just a cruel joke?' she questioned the Universe as she gazed lovingly at Misty, suddenly feeling happy tears forming in her eyes.

"Are you just a dream?" the courier inquired at last, her voice so quiet that Misty could barely hear it over the noise of the festival, "Are you going to suddenly vanish one day, leaving me to find myself sitting sullenly, sipping bitter tea in a hotel restaurant in Vermillion City?"

"Only if it means that I'm going to spend the rest of my life in a hollow loveless, and completely meaningless relationship," her beloved responded, brushing away Miranda's tears as she spoke, "Unable to break away from a man who would find more pleasure in victory in a pokemon battle, than he ever would in my arms."

"Then, if Fate is so cruel, my love," finished Miranda shakily, "and this is all just a dream we're both having, then let us never ever awaken."

"I agree," Misty replied, tilting her head as she pressed her lips against Miranda's for a moment, "Let us sleep forever, let's make this dream carry on for all eternity."

Miranda tilted her head obligingly, feeling Misty's lips slide across her own as the girl spoke. "I promise," she breathed, giving her lover a few soft teasing kisses before following them up with a more passionate one.

All too soon, however, Miranda heard a strangely uncharacteristically polite voice in her ear. "Ratta," warned Nezumi quietly, causing Miranda to reluctantly pull away and glance at Nezumi on her shoulder.

"Where?" she inquired softly, really only hearing the sound of Misty's breath as she panted in an exhaustion that was purely emotional.

Nezumi stood on his haunches and motioned with his nose to where several festival officials were rounding up the stray poetry contest contestants. "I guess that means us," commented Miranda, turning back to Misty.

The trainer nodded in agreement, finally managing to breath normally as a few stray thoughts lingered in her mind. "Something wrong?" inquired Miranda, running her fingers gently down Misty's cheek, "You look a bit flushed."

"Um, ask me later, okay?" responded Misty, hoping her words didn't sound like too much of a plea as she tried to cover her embarrassment.

"Count on it," chuckled Miranda, a small knowing smile crossing her lips as she took Misty's hand and turned towards one of the on coming officials. "I'm over here!" she called out to the man in a shirt that proclaimed 'Cerulean End Of Summer Fest' on one side and 'STAFF' on the back before glancing at Misty again, "Shall we...?"

Chapter X

Once the crowd had calmed down, and all the contestants had been accounted for except for James, the festival coordinator finally returned to the stage. He took his time crossing it, the stress of the interruption showing upon the old man's face despite his attempts to hide it as he adjusted the microphone to his height.

"Is this on?" he inquired after a moment, pleased by the way his voice echoed through the area, "Okay, now I know that all you youngin's are all hyper over the excitement we just had, and you all want to gossip about it, so the judges have decided to speed things along a little."

He waited a few moments for his words to sink in, and to make sure that he had everyone's attention. "Now then," he continued after clearing his throat, and pulling out a small card containing the names of the winners, "Our third place winner is; Caitlin Storm of Viridian City."

One section of the crowd immediately applauded louder than all rest, throwing in a few cheers just for good measure as a rather hyperactive trainer bounced up and down before grabbing her meowth and tossing the poor thing into the air several times in her elation. 

"We must have missed that one," commented Misty, noticing that the meowth seemed to be enjoying the treatment. Or simply didn't care.

"That'll teach us to be late," Miranda teased, squeezing Misty's hand a little tighter as the old man read off the second name.

"Good luck," replied Misty, immediately turning her head back to face Miranda, carefully watching her expression as the name was read aloud.

"The second place winner," the festival coordinator told the audience, "is Josh Thompson of Neon Town."

Not far away from where they stood, Miranda could see the tall, thin man who'd gone before her politely smile and wave to the people who glanced at him, but otherwise remain silent.

"Our second and third place winners will both receive free passes to the park for the remainder of the Festival," continued the old man, obviously anxious to leave the stage and sit down somewhere, "But first, our first place contestant, and winner of dinner for two at 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue' is..." He paused for a moment, chuckling as he pretended to shuffle through the three cards he held concealed in his hands.

"I have faith in you," whispered Misty with a smile, watching as Miranda stared intently at the figure on stage, barely breathing, and suddenly sweating despite the cool breeze that passed over her.

"Miranda Lilcamp of Lavender Town!" the old man called out, grinning broadly as she joined the applause spread throughout the crowd, "Now then, would Ms. Lilcamp please come up to accept her prize?"

"That's your cue," giggled Misty, having to give Miranda a small push to get her legs working again.

"Thanks," laughed Miranda, pushing down the nervousness she didn't think she should be feeling, "I owe it all to you."

Misty smiled happily, applauding as loudly as she could as Miranda walked towards the stage on legs that felt as thought they were made of straw. Yay, Miranda!" she called, causing the rattata on her lover's shoulder to turn around and grin mischievously, "Way to show 'em how it's done!"

The festival coordinator smiled and held out his hand to Miranda as she walked back up the stairs and over to the mike once again. "Congratulations," he told her, his voice echoing via the microphone as he took Miranda's hand and shook it before the moment could really sink in, "how about a few words while we find you those passes?"

Miranda smiled, hoping she didn't look as silly as her elation made her feel. "No problem," she told him before taking her place at the mike and scanning the crowd for Misty.

"Okay," she said at last, catching sight of the smiling water-  
trainer as Nezumi stared out at the sea of people before him in amazement, "I really don't know what you want to me to say, but I think just a general 'thanks' is most appropriate. It was fun, and I intend to make the most of my prize. Thanks..."

Miranda stepped back from the microphone as the spectators applauded and the old man returned with a peculiar gleam in his eye and an envelope. "Here you are," he said simply holding it out to her and glancing at the sea of people, "enjoy your prize, Ms. Lilcamp."

Miranda nodded, and was about to thank him again when Nezumi let out a sudden quiet hiss. "Nezumi?" she inquired quietly, accepting the envelope and glancing in puzzlement at her rattata, "What is it, dearest?"

The rattata's eyes gleamed with suspicion as he watched the old man motioned for the crowd to cheer louder. "Ra ra, 'zumi," the rodent muttered under his breath, his snout close to his trainer's ear as he spoke.

"I see," replied Miranda, her feelings of elation being pushed aside by the suspicious doubt her pokemon had placed in her mind, "Let's go while can."

The courier gave the old man a wide birth as he turned to face her, still grinning broadly and applauding heartily. "Congratulations!" he called after her as Miranda headed down the stairs, "You deserve it, Miss! Way to go!"

"Looks like you were right!" laughed Misty, bounding out of nowhere and flinging her arms around Miranda, "You did win!"

"Um, yeah," chuckled Miranda dryly, smiling as best she could as she met Misty's happy gaze, "Mind if I talk to you for a second?"

Misty gave her a suspicious look, searching for any sign of elation in Miranda's eyes and finding only thoughtful worry. "Okay..." she agreed reluctantly, letting Miranda take her hand and lead her away from the stage and the main mass of the crowd...

"It's Nezumi," explained Miranda once they'd found a park bench and had sat down.

"Oh?" inquired Misty, holing out a finger and scratching the rattata under the chin affectionately, causing Nezumi to relax to the point where he nearly lost his footing.

"He sensed something about the festival coordinator," explained Miranda as she opened the envelope she'd won, "Something he didn't like."

"That's not good," agreed Misty, half a smile remaining on her face as Nezumi tilted his head way back and stood helpless upon his haunches, letting her finger gently scratch the nape of this neck as the rattata exaggerated his approval, "He usually likes everybody."

"If you can see past the sarcastic, often off-colour remarks he makes about them," the rattata's trainer agreed, smiling lovingly despite her mock disapproval as she tilted her head to one side in order to brush her cheek against Nezumi's soft, purplish fur.

Misty laughed as the rattata made a happy noise and flung his forepaws about Miranda's neck. "Nez, ra rattata," he assured, closing his eyes and smiling contentedly.

"Although something must have really freaked him out if he's being that affectionate without being sarcastic," commented Misty, starting to catch on to Nezumi's voice inflections, and just a little bit of the rodent pokemon's words, "Did he say what is was precisely?"

Miranda shook her head as she extracted Nezumi from her neck and out him in her lap before shuffling closer to Misty. "He's not sure," she explained, putting an arm around her beloved as she examined the two tickets in her other hand, "there was just something very... 'Unnatural' about him."

"Any ideas?" inquired Misty, leaning her head on Miranda's shoulder and smiling to herself as Nezumi made himself comfortable in the small crevasse where their legs touched.

"Yes," admitted Miranda, glancing down at Nezumi and smiling as the rattata made it perfectly clear to any passers by that the two humans were 'his', "But I don't like my suspicions. Remember what Kathy said about dittos?"

Misty shuddered at the thought, not even wanting to contemplate what the scientist must have done to synthesize their metamorphic abilities. "Unfortunately," she admitted.

Miranda nodded. "What was her accomplice's name, again?" she inquired rhetorically, "Oh yes. Victor. Strange that someone like him would be so close to someone like her."

"You mean because he's so attractive?" inquired Misty, with a smirk.

"Yeah, I suppose I'm just being superficial," the woman agreed thoughtfully, "but it does make me wonder why, if she can change her face, she doesn't wear a more pleasant one."

"Bones," replied Misty thoughtfully, "A while back I- 'We'; met this girl who specialized in training dittos. They're just globs of pinkish goo in their true form, and even when they transform they're really only imitating solidity. Maybe Kathy's actual facial structure makes it so she can't improve her looks, just change them."

"Makes sense, I suppose," agreed Miranda with a shrug, glancing down at the now snoozing Nezumi, "It's not a big limitation, but it means that there's only so many faces she can wear, right?"

"At least two others that we know of," added Misty, breaking her reverie and looking up at Miranda until the courier turned to face her.

"Yes, the one she wore at the Sylph Co installation, and the one she showed up with today," Miranda paused for a moment, turning to look into Misty's eyes, searching for the moral support she knew she'd find, "But I suppose that Kathy was right. If she'd had that ability the day she went after Selece and Undine, my father would probably still be alive."

"No," said Misty sadly, "I think she was right. Kathy probably would have wanted no witnesses irregardless of her face changing power. Or worse, she might simply have impersonated your parent's voices and lured the dragons out into a trap. I've seen that trick before."

"I hadn't thought of it that way," said Miranda sadly, staring at the ground at her feet.

"I, I'm sorry..." whispered Misty, searching Miranda's eyes for the tears that didn't seem to want to come.

"No, it's alright," assured Miranda, forcing a weak smile to her lips, "You've given me the strength to move on. And now that I know she's here in this city somewhere, there's finally some hope that'll I'll catch up to her. But most importantly, my love, you've shown me two very important things."

"And what are they?" inquired Misty, her heart feeling as though it were lodged in her throat, as a mix of uncertain emotions fought for supremacy within her.

Miranda's smile returned, and her gray eyes filled with love as she spoke. "You've shown me how easy it is to fall in love a second time," she explained, giving Misty a playfully teasing kiss upon her nose, "And you've shown me something far more important than just revenge. No one else has ever done that."

"You've been in love before?" inquired Misty, inwardly chastising herself for the sudden surge of jealously she felt.

Miranda nodded, smiling sadly. "Yes," she admitted guiltily, "Long before I even knew you existed, "That's one reason why it bothered me to see poorly Ash treated you. I sorta know what it's like..."

Misty's eyes went wide for a moment as the revelation sank in. "How long were you together?" she inquired nervously, not completely certain if she really wanted know, but willing to talk about anything that would take Miranda's mind off Kathy.

"Five, five months," answered Miranda hesitantly, suddenly looking away sadly, "Misty, I..."

"Yes?"

"I promise not to leave you like that," said Miranda rather quickly, turning back to meet her beloved's discerning gaze once more, "And that poem I wrote, just for you. It was more than a promise; it's an oath. You're the only I'll be with so long as we're together."

Misty reached up, careful not to disturb Nezumi, and put both arms around Miranda. "Your previous lover," she inquired softly, without malice, only concerned love, "Was unfaithful?"

Miranda nodded. "I really should have confided in you sooner," she responded, guiltily, "But it's something I've put far behind me. It was only yesterday when your sister tried to seduce me that it all came back to me. I- I don't think I've ever felt that horrible. Even though I didn't do anything, I felt... I felt just like I had done something. Is this making any sense whatsoever?"

Misty's smile was reassuring, as she gave Miranda a small kiss. "Yes," she agreed with a little nod, "And I don't want you to worry about it. I have no more right to be jealous of this person that I've never even met, than you have to be Ash, right?"

Miranda found it nearly impossible not to smile, and Misty chuckled at the woman's attempt not to. "You're right," she agreed, smiling broadly as she glanced at Misty overtop of her glasses, "I bow to your superior logic, M'Lady."

"So we're even, then?" laughed Misty, giving Miranda an impulsive kiss.

"Mmm, mostly..." responded Miranda, glancing around conspiratorially, "But I think this is where a horde of ex lovers are supposed to come streaming out the woodwork."

"And if they do?" inquired Misty in a mock tone of suspicion.

"Then I'll banish every last one from my site!" assured Miranda, announcing it as though it were a proclamation.

"Good!" laughed Misty, kissing her lover again, "But one question. How many people have you been with?"

Miranda's mirth suddenly vanished once more as her stomach started becoming used to the emotional roller coaster the day was becoming. "In total? Three," she admitted solemnly, somehow finding the strength to not break eye contact, "But the second one was more like therapy."

"Oooh, a rebound relationship," teased Misty, desperately hiding her sudden feeling of insecurity.

"Kinda," agreed Miranda, feeling both embarrassed and guilty, "But it was more like someone not being able to stand seeing me having such a difficult time. I don't regret that 'relationship' and perhaps because of it, I know that I'll never regret this one."

Misty nodded, and Miranda could see that she was thinking hard about something. "Well, you're the first person I've ever 'been' with," she admitted, "But now I can't help wonder if you might compare me to the others..."

"Oh, I do!" laughed Miranda with a mischievous grin, catching Misty off guard, "And they were terrible lovers compared to you!"

It took a moment for Misty's brain to shift tracks as Miranda found both her hands and kissed them both. "But I can think of about ten or so someone's you were with long before you found me," she teased, smiling as Misty's eyes went wide with sudden befuddlement.

"T-Ten!" Misty stammered as the laughing courier took hold of her index finger.

"Yup!" agreed Miranda, waggling the captured digit, "Here's one now!"

"Oh-!" exclaimed Misty, not having time to be embarrassed before Miranda grabbed her next finger.

"And here's another!" exclaimed Miranda mirthfully, giving the finger a playful tug before moving on, "And another! And another! And another-!"

"Hey!" laughed Misty, laughing uncontrollably as Miranda tugged at her fingers and proclaimed them to be another of her secret lovers, "You're embarrassing me!"

"Then fight back," laughed Miranda, grabbing Misty's thumb, "Oh! I didn't know he was you're type, Misty!"

"You-!" the trainer laughed yanking back her hand before darting them forward, finding Miranda's ribs almost instantly.

"No-!" shrieked Miranda, laughing and hardly caring how silly she sounded, as Misty's fingers ruthlessly tickled her sides, "Hey, no fair!"

"Oooh!" teased Misty as Nezumi managed to extricate himself and promptly hid underneath the bench where it was reasonably safe, "I didn't know you were ticklish!"

"I'm not!" laughed Miranda, not even trying to make the lie sound convincing as she was forced onto her back into a near fetal position by Misty's tickling tactic.

"Yeah, and I hate ice-cream!" countered Misty, leaning over Miranda and stopping short of kissing her, yet not letting up, "You know, if you kiss me, I'll stop."

Miranda managed to open one eye, and desperately tried to bring her lips together. "You-!" she gasped, laughing as she struggled to even raise her head enough, "You're so mean!"

"Come on," teased Misty, smiling broadly as her fingers wriggled their way down Miranda's sides, "You can do it!"

"Um, would you two like to be alone...?" came a familiar half concerned, half amused voice, breaking Misty's concentration, and giving Miranda a moment to breath.

"Uncle Frank!" Miranda exclaimed theatrically from her awkward position, her arms and legs out at odd, uncomfortable angles as she turned her head to face the Pokeforce Officer, "It's not what you think!"

"Oh Miranda!" the cop replied with equal melodrama, throwing the back of his and against his forehead, "What will I tell the children!"

"That you're both completely crazy?" offered Misty with an amused smile as she rested her head on Miranda's chest as her lover caught her breath.

"Guilty as charged!" laughed Frank as his growlithe peeked out from behind him, "But I just thought you both might like to know that Jenny's fine, and the perp's awake if you'd like to talk to him."

"You, you'd let me?" inquired Miranda, her tone suddenly serious, here teary ears going wide with astonished endearment.

"Hey, how can I say no to my favorite niece?" inquired Frank stepping aside as Nezumi crept out of hiding and ran over to Bow.

"I'm your only niece!" laughed Miranda pushing herself and Misty up to a more dignified position as the two pokemon got reacquainted.

"And even then," she continued secretively, "That's conditional."

"I-! Ah-!" stammered Frank, clutching his heart and looking hurt, "You'd stop calling me 'Uncle'? Miri, how could you!"

"You know I wouldn't do that," assured Miranda glancing down at Nezumi who seemed rather annoyed about having wipe growlithe slobber off himself, "You're my favorite uncle first, and my favorite friend of the family second. But if you'd just have married Aunt Laurna..."

"Okay!" exclaimed Frank, clapping his hands together loudly, "Who wants to go down to the station and interrogate criminals!"

"Someone's avoiding the subject," chuckled Misty under her breath and trying not to be too embarrassed about getting caught in such an awkward position.

"Long story," assured Miranda with a smile as Bow began running around Frank's feet excitedly at her trainer's use of the word 'Go', "Ask me later..."

Chapter XI As they entered the small, poorly lit cellblock, the three human's and their pokemon could hear James' quiet muttering echoing off the gray painted stone walls. But, as they approached, their footsteps echoed as well, causing the prisoner to halt his quiet sobbing as he realized that he wasn't alone.

"There he is," commented Frank, idly motioning to the third of the six cell lock-up, causing James to stand up and come to see who his visitors were.

"I won't tell you anything!" the Rocket promised, holding one of the iron bars as he clenched his other fist, shaking it in defiant melodrama, "You won't get anything out of me! I am not a number!"

"Not even in exchange for leniency?" inquired Miranda, stepping forward and giving him a dark look as Frank muttered something about, "Be quiet #6.".

"Never," replied James defiantly, folding his arms and turning away, "I won't betray my friends."

"Some friends," chuckled Frank, soliciting a chuckle from his growlithe.

"You'll see!" announced James turning back to the group and rattling the bars of his cell again, "Jessie and Meowth will get me out of here; just you wait!"

Both Miranda and Nezumi shook their heads in dismay as the Rocket began laughing in what was supposed to be a sinister manner. "Ra. Rattata, nez," commented Nezumi, leaning back on his haunches and shaking his little head dismissively.

"What!" demanded James, glaring at the rattata with sudden irritation, "What did that little rat-fink say about me!"

Miranda folded her arms across her chest and smirked. "Only that you really have to work on your maniacal laughter," she commented, not bothering to hide her contempt for the organization the man belonged to, or the evil they represented, "He said he's heard better villain laughs out of slowpokes."

James glared angrily at Nezumi for a moment before stepping back and taking a deep breath. "I'll show you!" he exclaimed before filling the room with his off-key, rather unconvincing laughter.

"Has he always been this way?" inquired Frank as Bow did her best to cover her ears and let out a long whine.

Misty nodded. "From day one, I'm afraid," she explained in dismay, "I'm not even sure why he bothers."

"Why do I bother!" demanded James, breaking off his laughter to glare at the girl angrily, "How dare you insult me like that! I have a perfectly good villain laugh!"

"I've heard better," replied Miranda skeptically as the others nodded in agreement.

James gave them an imploring look for a moment before finally giving up. "Oh, you're right," the man muttered, sliding his hands down the iron bars as he sank to his knees, "I'm just no good at this..."

"Hm. Then perhaps we can make a deal," said Miranda thoughtfully.

"Oh?" responded everyone in the room, their collective surprise nearly taking on a palatable quality.

Miranda nodded carefully, and took out a black and gray pokeball. "Yes," she answered, choosing her words carefully as the ball expanded from it's storage size to active status, "If your willing to give us some information Kathy Forester."

James cringed visibly, his eyes betraying a sudden fear. "Her?" he asked weakly, a touch of hysterical laughter entering his voice, "Why would you want to know anything about her?"

"Because it was HER pokemon that busted up MY car!" growled Frank, soliciting a bark of agreement from Bow, and causing James to fall backwards before crawling back across the floor to escape their sudden animosity.

"That too," agreed Miranda, "But my reasons are my own. That machoke was Tashiro, registered to Dr. Katherine J. Forester of Team Rocket. Just tell me where I can find her, and her partner, and I'll have my gast- Err, haunter teach you to laugh properly."

James's eyes went wide with disbelief as a meek grin crossed his face. "Really...?" he inquired sheepishly.

Miranda nodded, glancing at Misty. "Can we trust him to keep up his end of the bargain?" she inquired.

"No way," she responded, shaking her head and glaring at the prisoner, "I've never seen him keep a promise in his life!"

"That's not very fair," pouted James, looking imploringly up at Frank, "Shouldn't you arrest her for slander, Officer? Listen to what that little twerp's saying about me!"

"I really don't think so," chuckled Frank, smiling in amusement as Misty quickly grabbed Miranda's arms from behind, holding her back from doing anything rash.

"Twerp!" the courier demanded, her anger flaring at the insult, "How dare you! You wanna be bishonin!"

"Now that's just mean," replied Frank with a smile, trying not to enjoy the banter too much.

"Yeah!" agreed James, nearly on the verge of tears, "I'll have you know that I went to the very best evil bishonin school in all the land! The fact that I flunked out not withstanding..."

"Irregardless," replied Misty, relaxing her grip as Miranda calmed down a notch, "I think it's better that you tell us what we want to know first."

"And why should I trust you?" inquired James, jumping to his feet and glancing suspiciously at his old adversary.

"Um, because we're the good guys?" offered Frank.

"Oh, well that's true," sighed James, contemplating the floor at his feet, "Very well them, she's going to be a the of 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue'."

"That fancy-shmancy restaurant that's opening?" inquired Frank, glancing at Miranda who nodded.

"Yes," she agreed, glancing over her shoulder at the bemused Pokeforce Officer, "The prize for winning that poetry contest we were in was dinner for two opening night."

"That's right," added James sadly, his head bowed, "a free dinner for two at the fanciest, classiest, most overpriced restaurant this side of Saffron City. I was going to go there with Jessie... We haven't eaten properly in weeks! It's just so unfair, Officer. I could have been a contender!"

"Yeah, whatever, but it's still no excuse to steal some poor guy's pikachu," replied Frank sternly, almost behaving like a real cop for once.

Misty cringed a little at the mention of the 'poor guy' and his pikachu, but managed to keep her voice level as Miranda held up Wraith's peculiarly coloured pokeball.

"You can trust us," promised Miranda with a smirk, "It's my pokemon I'd be afraid of."

James turned pale and fell backwards onto the floor once again as the pokeball split down the middle and the dark image of a haunter shimmered into existence just above it. "Oh no..." he stammered, fear creeping down his spine and clawing at his heart, "Not again..."

Wraith, however, didn't seem interested in the incarcerated man; instead he turned to his trainer with a proud smile, and held his hands before him. "Haunt!" he exclaimed happily, spinning his disembodied palms in the air for Miranda to inspect.

"They're lovely," replied Miranda sweetly, taking one of her haunter's hands in her own and turning him around slowly so that Wraith faced James, "But right now I need you to do me one more little, tiny favor."

"Haunt?" inquired Wraith, one of his eyes moving around to the back, independent of the laws that governed corporeal beings and stared at Miranda curiously.

"Teach this man to laugh manically," his trainer instructed, making the haunter burst out laughing.

"No, no!" chuckled, not noticing as Misty took a few steps back, Bow let out a low whine, and Frank kept his eye on her ghostly pokemon, "Not like that, like you do when you REALLY want to scare someone!"

"Haun, wra!" agreed Wraith, nodding as best he could as his eye swiveled the rest of the way around and he began to float towards James with an evil grin.

"What-? What does it want?" demanded James, cowering against the far wall, shivering at the thought of getting to close to Wraith.

"He just wants to communicate with you directly," Miranda explained as though it were nothing, "When you feel his mind touch yours, just let it in. Don't worry, though, he's not a true psychic, so human minds are still pretty alien to him. Your thoughts will still be your own. Wraith's just going to talk in your mind for bit."

From her shoulder, Nezumi chuckled at the comment, before catching James's eye and giving his own sinister grin. "Raaaaa!" the rattata exclaimed, doing his best ghost impression as he stood on his hind legs and reached his forepaws into the air dramatically.

"Nooo!" shrieked James, his back pressed against the far wall as he felt something dark press against his mind. Somewhere, beyond his actual range of hearing, the Rocket could hear a quiet voice whispering over and over again.

"Just don't fight it," ordered Miranda sternly as Wraith passed through the bars of the cell as though they weren't even there, "he won't hurt you. You're not the one responsible for what happened to my family."

One of Wraith's eyes swiveled around to look at his trainer again. There was a curious sympathy in the single, strange looking eye, and Miranda could only smile lovingly back.

'Before you, I had no one to chase away my nightmares,' thought Miranda in response to the gentle touch she felt against her mind, 'Thank you, dearest.'

The haunter pursed his lips for a moment, almost blushing as both eyes turned to focus on James. "Haunter!" he ordered in a loud voice, an ethereal wind suddenly stirring up all around him, and blowing the human up against the wall even harder.

"Alright! Alright!" pleaded James, fighting against the wind only he could feel, covering his ears against its sinister howl that only he could hear, and shutting his eyes against horrible images that only he could see, "I'll let you in, just make it stop!"

"Stop?" inquired Frank, blinking loudly and trying to figure out what the borderline hysterical man was babbling about.

"Illusions," explained Misty with a shudder as she crept back up behind Miranda and peeked around at the scene, "Wraith's illusions must be stronger since he evolved."

"Indeed!" replied Miranda, her tone that of a proud mother, "Wraith is certainly extraordinary."

"Ra," commented Nezumi indignantly, causing Miranda to laugh and reach up to scratch the top of his head with her index finger affectionately.

"But you're still my favorite," she promised, making the rattata smile happily as he leaned against her neck and gave a contented sigh.

"Grow? inquired Bow a hint of jealousy in her voice as she glanced up at Frank,

The cop sighed and leaned down to scratch his growlithe's ears. "You really are a pain, you know that!" he told her, trying not to laugh as she licked his face.

"Gee," commented Misty, deciding not to watch what the haunter was doing, "Makes you wonder who the trainer is."

Miranda laughed in agreement, reaching behind her to take Misty's hand. "We all have our own ways of doing things, love," she replied with a reassuring smile, glancing over at James as he tried to laugh once more.

"I know," responded Misty reluctantly, slipping her fingers through Miranda's as she stepped closer to the growlithe, "I'm just not sure that I'm totally comfortable being so close to Wraith in such a confined space right now."

Miranda nodded keeping half an eye on Wraith as he covered his eyes and rotated his body from side to side in lieu of being able to shake his head in dismay.

"You don't have to stay if you don't want to," the courier offered, feeling deeply guilty for making Misty feel uncomfortable.

"No, no," her beloved assured, kneeling before the growlithe and holding out her hands, "It's okay. Hi there, Bow. Feeling ignored, are ya?"

Miranda nodded and turned her attention back to Wraith and James, concentrating on the task at hand. "See the problem?" she inquired, and Wraith nodded in agreement.

"L-look," stammered James, "maybe this isn't such a great idea."

"Just relax," commented Miranda in an annoyed tone, "and just listen to what Wraith has to say. I'll be right here to keep him from doing anything... Rash."

Wraith turned back to James chuckling. 'Don't you feel it, human?' he inquired directly into the man's mind, 'the urge to laugh? To shake loose the cobwebs in your mind and soul? The need to fill the world with your thunderous laughter?"

James desperately wanted to take a step back as the ghost hovered closer, but the cold stone wall bared his path. "I-! I-!" he stammered, feeling what could best be defined as Wraith's hot breath upon his face, yet he wasn't entirely certain as to how that was even possible, "I do! I really do! Just leave me alone!"

Wraith grinned malevolently before letting loose with a deep, thunderous laughter so maniacally sinister that it even made Miranda jump about a foot in the air and clutch her heart.

Behind her the courier heard Misty scream and Frank curse as Bow started barking and Nezumi fell off her shoulder, grabbing hold of her ponytail just in time.

"Wraith!" she exclaimed, breathing heavily as she tried to slow her pulse.

"Haunt...?" replied Wraith meekly, turning around and floating over to his trainer with his hands together in front of his face in a gesture of meekness.

"Ap-Apologize to Misty!" was the only thing she could think of to say as the ghost hovered a little lower and looked up at her, his eyes going wide in an attempt to look cute.

"It- it's okay," stammered Misty as Miranda turned to face her, "I- I think he could probably use that as a new technique!"

"Yeah!" agreed Frank, laughing as the primal fear exited his mind, "That was great! It was like the ghost version of the 'Roar' technique!"

"Lithe," muttered Bow in reluctant agreement, glaring up at the ghost with little flames dancing along her bared teeth.

"Wra?" inquired Wraith peeking around Miranda as his disembodied hand phased through his trainer's torso and took gentle hold of Nezumi.

"Absolutely!" assured Frank, petting Bow to try to calm her down, "Ms. Lilcamp, you do have quite the ghost. Just try to tone him down a little."

Miranda nodded as Wraith deposited Nezumi back on her shoulder. "Are you both okay, though?" she asked, glancing at Misty and the rattata.

"I'll be fine," responded Misty, taking a deep breath as Miranda walked over and took hold of her shoulders, "I'm just not used to him yet."

"I guess it's a Lav'Brat thing," Miranda commented as Misty stood up and hugged her, "I'm sorry, though. I really hate scaring you."

"It's fine, it's fine," repeated Misty, looking up at Miranda before reaching up to pet Nezumi, "And you're okay too, right?"

The rattata grinned sarcastically and nodded before turning to Wraith and shaking a small claw at him. In response, the haunter looked even more downcast, yet smiled just enough for Nezumi to notice.

"Alright then," said Miranda with a wary sigh, "Let's get back at it. Wraith, wake up James and try again."

The haunter chuckled, as he turned to the unconscious human. 'Wow!" he thought with grim satisfaction, coupled with amazement, "Did I do that! Dang, I'm good!'

James suddenly felt insatiably hungry, more so than he had in days. With an unhappy grumble, he stretched out and rubbed his eyes. "Another day, another lost pikachu he muttered, opening his eyes to the sight of Wraith hovering before him with one of his strange dark hands missing, "Ah! Oh no! It's a nightmare!"

'No actually,' chuckled Wraith in his mind, suddenly drawing his missing hand out of James forehead, 'Those are much more tasty!'

With a look of disgusted horror, the man curled into the fetal position at the sight of what Wraith held in his hand. "Ah! Put it back! Put it back!" he cried as the haunter held what appeared to his brain.

The ghost merely chucked, poking at the gray matter with his free hand, and giggling as James stopped feeling hungry, and started feeling positively euphoric. "No!" the human pleaded giddily, "Not there!"

"Wraith, knock it off," ordered Miranda, not having to see the illusion to know what her ghost was up to.

Wraith gave a pouty look and tossed the chimerical brain over his shoulder, causing it to shatter into small fragments of coloured light. 'Now then,' he instructed, pulling out his real hand, and ceasing his literal 'playing with James's brain', 'Listen up. For a really good maniacal laugh, you have to start with proper breathing. No, no, hold your stomach in, the vibrations come from your chest, not your gut. But that's where you have to feel it. Yes, that's it! Now, push it out in long waves..."

James nodded, concentrating on his breathing for several moments, and almost hyperventilating in the process. "Like this?" he inquired, holding his stomach in as he went through the motions.

'Exactly!' cackled Wraith, rubbing his hands together with glee before looking down at them proudly, 'Oh, I don't know what I did without these! Now then, let's try it with the laughter.'

James nodded, taking on a huge grin as he threw his head back and did his best to emulated Wraith's truly supernatural laughing ability.

'No, no, no! You're doing it all wrong!' hissed Wraith in irritation and reached his hand into James's chest, 'Here, I'll show you..."

"What-? What are you doing!" exclaimed James, panicking as usual.

'Look, you bag of bones,' he replied irritably as he stared directly into the man's eyes, and almost into his very soul, 'If we're going to work together, you're going to firstly, have to co-  
operate, and secondly, NEVER ask my that question. You probably don't want to know.'

James nodded, trying to hold back his tears as Wraith looked to one side and began nibbling his tongue thoughtfully. 'Oh! Here we go,' he replied gritting his ethereal teeth as James felt something odd within his chest, 'Now, just trust me, and follow the feeling with your laugher. Now, as you do this, imagine your greatest moment of triumph! The columniation of all your dreams! See in your mind, all your goals achieved!'

The man sighed heavily, abandoning all hope, but thankful that this ghost wasn't as bad as the others who'd used him as a chew toy over the years.

After taking a deep breath, James slowly let his laughter build, all the while imagining a glass cage held firmly in his hands. Within it, was Pikachu. The lightning rodent looked up at him imploringly and with a happy grin, he opened the cage. With that, Pikachu leapt into his arms, making happy sounds as Meowth translated that he wanted James to be his new trainer. That he wanted nothing to do with the twerp who had forced him to hurt the one human he truly respected. Beneath him, James envisioned Ash screaming and yelling in betrayal, desperately ordering Pikachu to thunder-shock the three Rockets, but the pokemon would have nothing to do with it.

'Now,' whispered Wraith, 'Feel the laughter. BE the laughter... Push it up, one wave at a time. You're not just filling the air with sonic vibrations; you're telling the world that you, and you alone have done what no one has ever succeeded in doing before! You're the best, you're number one! Tell not just this world, but also the entire universe! Let your laughter ring through all the dimensions your mind can fathom and beyond!'

James closed his eyes, filtering out all other distractions; the quiet murmur of the other human's, the oppressive cold of the concrete floor beneath him, the terrible rash his fire-proof, yet not non-carcinogenic Team Rocket uniform was giving him... Instead, he focused his mind on the image of finally being able to tell Augustus Giovanni that he'd finally captured Pikachu. That he'd finally proven to himself, to his boss, and most importantly to Jessie, that he was indeed, a true villain!

The laughter started out as more of a quiet giggle, centered deep in his throat. The man could feel the odd tingling sensation slowly rising as he began, and he followed the feeling with his laughter as it rose through his throat. Louder and louder the crescendo of maniacal laughter became, rising and falling in waves as it exited his mouth and filled the room with it's echoing, satisfying quality, filling James with an as yet unfelt euphoria.

'That's it! That's it!' exclaimed Wraith excitedly, clapping his hands together, but only really succeeding in making odd, muffled squishing sounds, 'You see! I knew you could do it, human! Way to go!'

As the last notes fell from his lips, James leaned forward to catch his breath. He then pulled in his legs and hugged them against his chest as he wallowed in the feeling of deep satisfaction that filled his very being. "Amazing..." he muttered, shaking his head in disbelief, "I never knew I had in me!"

"Rattata!" agreed Nezumi calling out loudly and causing James to look up at the onlookers.

"Well I'm impressed," commented Misty with a look of honest astonishment as she politely applauded.

"Thank you!" exclaimed James, leaping to his feet and bowing deeply, "Thank you all!"

"This is so twisted," laughed Miranda, putting an arm around Misty and giving her half a hug as tears of joy filled the villain's eyes, "But I think I like it!"

"Yup," commented Frank, shaking his head and trying not to laugh, "This almost makes getting my car busted up worth it. Almost..."

Chapter XII

The North side park was annoyingly crowded as the three walked the short distance across the soft grass to one of the few free picnic tables. All around them, the voices of tourist and native Ceruleans echoed in their ears as children ran about and wind blew the tops of the abundant shade giving trees far above their heads.

"This place was a real forest when I was growing up," commented Misty sadly as she set down her tray, "It's scary sometimes how things change when you leave and come back after such a long time."

Frank nodded as he sat down across from Miranda as she sat beside Misty. "Yeah, but I guess you have that problem every year," he agreed, glancing at Miranda.

"Not really," said the woman with a shrug, filling her teacup as Nezumi grabbed several fries off Frank's tray and disappeared under the table, "But then, not much changes in Lavender from year to year. Mom still wants me to spend more time at home, a few more morons think they can just walk into the tower and capture ghosts, and Aunt Laurna wonders why you left her at the alter."

Frank nearly choked on his hamburger, causing Misty to smile and try not to laugh. "Hey, I said I'd talk about that later," he replied nervously, pounding his chest to make sure he didn't choke.

"It is later," persisted Miranda with a knowing smile as she picked up her father's handleless cup and took a sip of her tea.

Frank sighed heavily and nodded. "Look, I really have no excuse," he replied, staring down at his food and linking his fingers in front of him before glancing up at Miranda apologetically, "As I said, things just got weird between us. Too routine, I suppose. I dunno, I just had this image in my mind of turning into one of those boring middle-aged men with almost no hair, and my pants pulled up to my neck. And I don't even want to think about what our kids would turn out like! Especially with all those ghosts she has. Also, Laurna's just too... Too..."

"Nice?" offered Miranda, her tone serious but compassionate.

Her uncle nodded, glancing up at her before speaking. "Yeah, I just didn't want to change her," he explained, "Here was this wonderful woman who was everything I could ever want, and then there was me, her complete opposite. Where as she has that shy, mysterious quality to her, I'm Mr. Extrovert. Where she's successful, well-liked and smart, I always react without thinking, I wasn't able to hold down a real job until I joined the Pokeforce, and half the people in Lavender thought I was crazy! Where Laurna's all sweet and innocent, I'm... Um, uh..."

"A pervert?" offered Misty with a grin, causing Frank to laugh. "That's it!" he admitted, his usual mirth returning immediately, "I guess I just couldn't stand the thought of 'corrupting' her, you know?"

"Wow," chuckled Miranda sympathetically as she reached across the table and gave her Uncle's hands a reassuring squeeze, "As much as you try to deny it, you are a gentleman."

"What!" exclaimed Frank, sitting up straight and looking around nervously, causing his companions to laugh, "Who told you...!"

Beneath the picnic table, Nezumi leapt off the bench seat and grinned up at Bow as she stared expectantly up at her trainer. "Yo, pyro-puppy!" he called holding out a French fry, "Ya hungry?"

Bow glanced at the rattata and gave him an alarmed look. "Y-yes," she stammered, taking a step back, "But..."

"What?" asked Nezumi, taking a bite from the other fry, "They're good."

Bow glanced up at Frank in time to see him reach under the table with several small bits of what used to be a French fry in his hand. "There!" the growlithe explained, happily wagging her fuzzy tail, "That's the way to serve food."

"What? All cut up into reeeeeeally tiny pieces?" commented Nezumi quizzically, taking a bite of the second potato stick and chewing loudly, "Man, you're one spoiled growlithe!" 

"Gee," replied Bow, chewing her food with the utmost of dignity and grace, "Next you'll be saying I shouldn't ask for help and just jump onto the couch on my own! What? Were you raised in barn!"

"So," asked Frank as the three finished their food, "Do you think they'll be at the restaurant's opening tonight?"

"I wouldn't doubt it," responded Miranda with a shrug, "I doubt that that James guy lied about that. Kathy did have her pokemon try to kill him after all."

"I guess Rockets just play for keeps," commented Frank, glancing down as his watch chimed. "Hm, looks like Jen's going to be alright," he chuckled, switching back from the pager setting to chronometer.

"Is it a threat or a love letter?" teased Miranda, grinning slyly as her uncle looked distressed for a moment.

"With her? Both!" he laughed, dropping his hands on the table before getting to his feet, and glancing at his lunch companions, "Anyway, I'd best get down there and see how she is, otherwise I'll never hear the end of it... Bow! Let's go, girl!"

"Have fun," his niece chuckled as Bow ran out from under the table and ran around his feet excitedly, "Oh, and thanks for the help."

"Twern't nothin' ma'am," Frank replied with a wide grin in his best cowboy accent before glancing at Misty, "Nice meeting you, eh. It's good to see Miri happy."

"Just doing my job," Misty laughed, unable to keep a straight face as she tried to make it seem like a huge chore.

"Oh, and before I forget," said Frank, turning back to them with a wide grin as Bow ran around him barking at him to hurry up, "I'll be at the restaurant tonight."

"Really?" replied Miranda with sudden amused suspicion.

"Yup!" agreed Frank with a nod as he stood a little taller, "Jenny and myself received invites seein' as we're this city's most prominent officers."

"Meaning you begged, cajoled, and promised to be good until she agreed to take you as her date," corrected his niece, smiling as she saw in his eyes that she was right.

Frank laughed a bit and glanced down at the growlithe. "Come on!" he teased before waving good-bye and heading off again, "Get your fur on! Okay, see you there!"

"So," chuckled Miranda, reaching under the table and picking up Nezumi as she watched her almost Uncle tease Bow by pretending to get ready to run, "Think we should dress up for this thing? 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue' sounds pretty classy to me. 'Course, I may be assuming that just because the owner seems to be a bit of a snoot."

Misty looked thoughtful for a moment, glancing over her shoulder as Miranda laughed when Bow kicked in her 'agility' technique and ran off so fast she missed it, leaving Frank to laugh and call out "Fooled you!"

"I suppose," she said a bit sullenly, "But I'm afraid everything nice in my closet once belonged to one of my sisters or other. But I suppose I could undo some of the stitching in one a bit to account for your height-"

"That's not what I meant, dear," assured Miranda, reaching over and taking Misty's hand in her own, "I meant that perhaps we should go and pick out something new for us to wear. You've had enough 'hand-me-downs'. It's time you had something new."

Misty met Miranda's suddenly serious gaze with a look of both amazed disbelief and admiration. "I- I don't want to drive you into debt or anything," she stammered, feeling too polite to simply accept the offer, "I mean, you're already paying my way wherever we go as is..."

Miranda shrugged. "It's nothing," she assured with a dismissive wave of her free hand, "Besides, it's been a few months since I really made my card smoke."

Misty laughed a little as Miranda stood up and extracted herself for the picnic table. "Oh, and for the record," added the courier, "I don't think you're 'free loading' or anything. Every day you give me something money can't buy."

"Oh?"

"Your love..."

The sign above the door of the little coffee/seamstress shop on Clearwater Lane read simply, "Irene's Textile and Coffee Shop". But the little signs in the window proclaiming, "Pants hemmed before you can blink!" and "Wedding dresses while you wait!" didn't tell the whole story.

The proprietor was a friendly looking woman who looked to be in her late thirties, but her friendly blue eyes, which hid behind bifocals spoke of a wisdom at least twice that. She wore a comfortable looking dress whose colour matched her eyes almost perfectly, with a kind of sleeveless vest over it made of a courser material. The vest seemed to be something of the seamstress's version of a tool belt, having dozens of small pockets that overflowed with buttons and thread, while pins and needles of various sizes and shapes poked out of it at odd angles.

With a friendly smile and a few kind words, the woman, whose name actually turned out to be Irene, brought Misty and Miranda to of the free tables and brought them a pot of Earl Gray tea before they'd barely had time to open their mouths.

"I'm just a little busy right now," Irene explained in a motherly tone before scurrying off into the back room so quickly that neither saw her even move.

"She must hate to be bored, I guess," commented Miranda, glancing around at the little shop's collection of what appeared to be homemade art and craft projects.

"My mother was like that," agreed Misty, noting the plushy seel that rested atop a shelf lined with mostly books on sewing and several dozen cans of imported coffee grounds, "But she just liked to travel. She wasn't really all that creative."

"Just couldn't sit still?" inquired Miranda semi-rhetorically, deciding it would was probably better to use the teacups they'd been brought rather than spend an hour digging into the bottom of her backpack for her own and reached for the teapot.

Misty nodded, glancing at the thin beaded curtain that separated the back room from the main area as the powerful motor of an industrial sewing machine filled their ears with its rapid thudding sound. "Just like me, I guess," she agreed once the noise had ceased, replaced by a few muffled words as Irene spoke a few unkind words to the machine through a mouth full of needles.

"Well, I'm quite glad you got that trait," commented Miranda as Irene stepped out of the back room followed by a somewhat bewildered looking young woman clutching a flat rectangular box protectively, "It'd have to take a desk job if you hated traveling."

Misty nodded, not quite hearing as Irene printed the customer off an invoice and handed it to her, causing the woman to stammer in appreciative disbelief. "But-! But-!" she finally managed to say, "The place over on the other side of town said my wedding dress would cost me two thousand, five hundred credits, and you're only charging me two hundred and ten!"

"Well, if it wasn't for her need to travel, I'd probably still be living at home," continued Misty a little sadly as Irene chuckled heartily and accepted the woman's card. "But at least some good came of it," she added rather hastily, smiling up at Miranda's suddenly sullen expression, "I wouldn't have met you otherwise."

"Actually," corrected Miranda, thinking back, as Irene hurried over to their table, "We'd have met sooner. Although I'm not sure we'd be sitting here right now."

Misty's comment was cut short by the proprietor's sudden appearance. "So! What'll it be, ladies?" she inquired cheerily, "Just hear for a bite to eat, or do you need something hemmed? I noticed your jeans need mending, miss."

Miranda gave a bit of a startled look, surprised that the woman had noticed the holes that were forever forming at the knees of her jeans. "Um, actually we were looking into getting something to wear over to that new restaurant tonight."

Irene quickly stifled a negative comment but her disapproval was subtly evident. "I see," she said, thoughtfully rubbing her chin for a moment, "Well, I have a book over by the counter if you'd like to take a look. Just remember, that you can change the colours, and fabric to your liking. As well as mixing and matching if you don't find exactly what you're looking for."

"I take it you don't like that place too much," commented Misty as the woman lead them over to the counter and took out a huge tome. Its outer cover was made from ancient leather carved with arcane looking runes and had long ago started fraying at the edges. As it hit the counter, the book that would have Merlin's grimiore look like a paperback sent a cloud of dust into the air.

A moment later, and Irene had unlocked the impressive looking latch with a huge black skeleton key before prying open the volume to reveal hundreds of thousands of pages. Many had been taken from pattern books and fashion magazines, most of which had gone out of print years before Misty or Miranda had been born. Others though were high quality black and white photographs of people in various outfits. The fact that most of the people portrayed bore a resemblance to Irene made them infer that she's used her family to model her creations.

Irene shrugged as she flipped past a few hundred pages and turned the tome to face them. "Well, let's just say that I don't think Chef Troy is totally on the level," said the woman confidentially, "And I don't trust any restaurant that won't let me see their kitchen."

"Are you a food critic in your spare time?" inquired Miranda with a smile, meaning it in jest as Misty flipped through the tome's pages in amazement.

"Goodness, no!" laughed Irene, reaching under the counter and pulling out a plastic bottle full of water and taking a sip, "But I've done my time in my fair share of restaurants, and if they don't meet my standards, I won't eat there."

"Hey, you aren't..." began Misty, glancing up at the woman with an amazed looked, causing Irene's grin to broaden as she nodded.

"Yes, that was me," she agreed with a chuckle.

"Am I missing something?" inquired Miranda, glancing at the dress Misty was indicating.

"Irene had the most famous restaurant in Neon Town closed down for health violations several years ago," explained Misty with a touch of awe.

"That was a long time ago, miss, but never underestimate the power of a mom," added Irene, shaking her head in amusement, "So, is this the one you'd like?"

Misty glanced over at Miranda questioningly. "Can you afford it?" she asked quietly, trying to keep her voice down, but Miranda could see the excitement in her eyes.

"Easily," the woman agreed, unable to keep from smiling as Misty gripped the counter, nearly unable to contain herself at the prospect, "Oh, and I guess I'll take this one. In the dark blue if you have it."

Irene nodded as she sipped her bottled water. "Not a problem," she assured, motioning for them to follow, "Any ideas about material? I have everything from burlap to mareep wool!"

"Burlap!" they both exclaimed at once.

"Just kidding!" laughed Irene as they entered her inner sanctum, "Now one of you just stand on the stool so I can get your measurements..."

It seemed to take no time at all for the industrious woman to acquire their dress sizes, have them both agree on fabric, and user them out of the comforting clutter of her sewing room.

"This won't take long," assured Irene, insisting that they sit on the comfortable looking sofa at the far end of the room and putting their tea on the low table before them before hurrying off again.

Before they could even get comfortable, however, the woman hurried out of the back again with a large platter and set it down on the table before them. "Don't let Chef Troy fool you with his so called 'International Cuisine'," warned Irene a touch smugly as her guests stared down in awe at the variety of pastries, cookies, and various healthier delicacies she'd put before them, "This is real international food."

Miranda nodded, picking up a square of something that seemed to be layers of a sweet dark substance separated by baked dough. "This is Icelandic, isn't it?" she inquired, taking a bite and immediately feeling her arteries harden as she tasted more sugar than she usually had in a year.

Irene nodded. "I hope you like it," she said expectantly, her tone suddenly filled with worry.

"I'm sure we will," assured Misty, trying to contain her joy at the unaccustomed hospitality, "But I don't think we can eat it all!"

"Hey," chuckled Irene, making her way back to her personal domain, "No one leaves my shop hungry. But if you need too, I don't mind the smaller pokemon helping you out if you have any. Just make sure they don't make a mess."

"Thanks!" called Miranda as the woman disappeared before she could react, and pulled out two poke balls.

"Time to spoil them, I guess," she said with a wary sigh as Misty tried one of the half circle shaped doughy things near the center and made approving noises at the apple/cinnamon flavor, "Umi! Nezumi! Lunch break!"

The two pokemon materialized on the floor, but only Umi was visible, rearing up like the serpent she was to look at Miranda questioningly for a moment before eying the food. As her strangely glowing eyes shifted from purple to bright gold, Nezumi climbed up her neck and leaned forward as he sat atop the dratini's head.

"Nez, ra?" he inquired, glancing up at his trainer as she sat back with a handful of different things on a small plate.

"Fang Fa- Err, I mean Wraith, doesn't eat, dear," the woman reminded, "Well, 'food' anyway... Besides, he's scared enough people for one week."

"Tatta," replied Nezumi with a shrug, before diving off Umi's head and grabbing pieces of three different kinds of cheese, one in each front paw, and one in his mouth.

"His nickname for Wraith is as colourful as his for yours, I take it?" laughed Misty as Nezumi made a compete pig of himself while Umi daintily sampled a piece of one of the offensive smelling, but pleasingly sliced kielbasa.

"'Fang Face'," agreed Miranda, quickly chewing and swallowing a piece of something she was certain wasn't in the plant or animal kingdoms when it was alive, but still tasted wonderful, "Umi's 'Draco Babe'."

"I hate to think what he calls my pokemon."

Nezumi glanced up and chuckled as he snatched away the cracker Umi was reaching for, grinning and tossing it back at her when she glared at him with fiercely swirling red eyes.

"'The Overgrown Magikarp', 'Shady' and 'Fish-Face'."

"Fish-Face!" exclaimed Misty angrily, leaning down and glaring at the rattata.

"Nez?" he replied, spitting out a mouthful of gouda as he stood on his hind legs and gave her a look of 'What's you're point?'.

"Gee, I can't wait 'till you get to know the other three," grumbled Misty, leaning back and glowering at Nezumi in mock anger as Miranda laughed.

"He knows you too well," she chuckled, taking a sip of the cooling tea, "He'd be running for his pokeball if he thought you were really mad at him."

"Am I really that easy to read?" the trainer inquired, reaching out and scratching Nezumi on the head and making him smile contentedly as Umi gave him a jealous look.

"Animals are always more in sync with emotions than we are," explained Irene, appearing beside the table as if by magic, "Now, if I could just borrow you both for a half a second, I have to get you to try these on so I can make the final adjustments."

"Already!" inquired Miranda, astounded as she glanced at her watch, "Wow..."

Irene shrugged and headed back into her workshop. "Ah! It's easy," she replied, her voice suddenly muffled by the curtain, "I used to just make myself new clothes before going to work in the morning if I couldn't find anything that I felt like wearing that day. Now come on, this won't take long."

True to her word, the dress fitting was over almost before it began. One moment Miranda was standing atop the stool, feeling a little awkward and surprised at herself for even suggesting the idea in the first place, and the next she was sliding back into her normal clothes while Irene slid pins through the fabric of Misty's brightly coloured dress faster than she could follow, but still getting the fit just right.

"All done!" the woman announced, helping Misty get out of the garment without getting stabbed a dozen times, "Just give me a few minutes."

Miranda blinked, shaking her head in amazement at the speed and efficiency at which the woman worked. "Makes me feel out of breath just watching her," she whispered to Misty as they left the room, causing the girl to chuckle.

"But she does a good job, apparently," agreed Misty, smiling as they found the two pokemon in a semi-conscious state lying on the table.

Nezumi was lying on his back, holding his bloated stomach, glanced up at the humans as they entered. He smiled and tried to squeak out a reply, but belched loudly instead, waking Umi from her slumber.

"Had enough?" inquired Miranda, giving Umi's eye ridges a gentle scratch before sitting down trying to find something the two hadn't devoured completely, "Gee, you'd think I never feed you guys!"

"Um, I know I don't want to know this," said Misty, sitting down and looking questioningly at the nearly empty platter, "But earlier you said 'Wraith doesn't eat. Food anyway.' Um, do I even want to know what he does eat?"

Miranda chuckled, leaning in close to Misty so that her lips nearly touched her lover's hear. "Dreams," she whispered quietly, her voice sounding mysterious, "Especially bad ones..." She then leaned back, letting her voice trail off as Misty turned to face her.

"Is that why you have him?" she asked, her tone sounding concerned.

The woman shrugged. "Not really," she explained, "But it's one of the reasons I kept him. After he stopped being a royal pain in the butt, I found that he could take care of a little problem that I was having. Chronic nightmares."

"I used to have those," sympathized Misty, taking her lover's hand and giving is a squeeze, "I suppose we have something else in common then."

Miranda nodded slowly. "Were they about your parents?" she asked carefully.

"Yes and no," her lover replied, leaning against Miranda and closing her eyes as she held her, "Mostly it was just me. All alone in a leaky boat during a storm, calling out to them. They never heard me, and I never found them, but the dreams stopped once I'd left home."

"I'm surprised you still love the water so much," Miranda commented quietly, feeling saddened that there was yet another down point in Misty's life she wasn't there to help fix.

"Oh, it wasn't the water I was afraid of," she corrected, "It wasn't even the storm really. It was just the feeling of isolation and being trapped. Knowing that I couldn't just go out and search for them made me feel so helpless. And I hate that feeling. Not being in control of my own destiny, not being able to make my own choices without being told what do to three people who can't even make proper decisions in their own selfish lives."

"I can't imagine what that's like," confessed Miranda, holding Misty closer, "But whatever you decide to do in the future, I'll support you."

"I know, Miri," whispered Misty, looking up at Miranda and smiling happily, "That's one reason I love you."

Misty kissed her gently and couldn't help but chuckle as she slid back into a normal sitting position. "It's okay," she called, blushing as she spoke, "You can come in now!"

Irene moved the blue and white beaded curtain aside and entered the room wielding two long dresses at arms length. "Okay, I think I have these the way you wanted them," the woman explained without missing a beat, pretending to have heard nothing as she held Miranda's dress a little higher to keep it from dragging, "But I'll want you to try them on before you go. I won't even charge you extra for the alterations."

"Wow, thanks," they both replied at once.

"Yes, now just go in the back and try them on," the woman explained as a man in a suit entered, displaying a terrible rip in his jacket.

The two obeyed, and were soon helping in each other into the nearly completed garments, surrounded on all sides by racks of clothing, bolts of fabric, and an enormous sewing machine that both appeared to rely on vacuum tubes and steam power to operate and looked about a hundred years older than its owner.

"You know," commented Miranda, covering up her sudden feeling of nervousness with a chuckle, "I haven't dressed this femininely since before I caught Wraith."

"Oh? How long ago was that?" inquired Misty, zipping up the back of Miranda's rather simple dark purple, long sleeved dress.

Miranda exhaled loudly, pushing her bangs out of her eyes for a moment as she thought about it. "Oh, going on three years ago now- No, wait! Four I think."

"You're such a bad mother!" Misty teased, shaking out the hem of the dress so that it'd stop clinging to Miranda's legs before untying Miranda's hair to give the full effect, "Can't even recall your children's birthdays!"

Miranda looked over her shoulder and gave her a questioning look around the smile she tried to hide. "Nezumi is in March, and Umi's in June. Same as me," she replied, her dark locks falling to one side and obscuring her face slightly, "Wraith, though, doesn't recall when he was... 'Created' so we just have his 'un-birthday on Halloween."

"I take it all back then," assured Misty mirthfully before becoming somewhat serious in her tone, "Now turn around so I can see you."

Miranda nodded, the strange self-conscious feeling returning as she let her arms fall at her sides and spun around, sending the hem of her dress in a bit of a spiral.

"Wonderful!" exclaimed Misty, clapping her hands together joyfully as the thing shoulder straps of her own sleeveless garment slid down her shoulders a bit, "Except that you look like you just swallowed a poliwag."

Miranda looked away and shook her head slowly. "Sorry, I was just thinking about what my Uncle's going to say when he sees me," she explained, a bit lost in her own thoughts for a moment before snickering and replying, "'Miranda! I never knew you were a girl under there!' Or some such nonsense."

Misty smirked, folding her arms across her chest and stepping close before tilting her head to one side and giving Miranda a slight kiss on the cheek. "Well, tell him he has to become 'real' family before he can make fun of you," she said sternly as her lover met her gaze and smiled, "Or I'll see how HE likes wearing a dress!"

"The Tower hath no wraith like Misty scorned," the woman laughed as Irene pushed the curtain aside.

"Everybody decent?" she inquired politely before hanging the jacket on a ceiling beam and practically ran over to Misty where she promptly tugged at the dress in various spots, sliding more pins through the fabric until it fit just right.

"Hm, sorry it doesn't quite fit in the front," the woman muttered, before scurrying over to Miranda with a mouth full of pins, "Now as for you..."

Miranda held her arms out to her sides, feeling a little embarrassed as the seamstress poked, prodded, and tugged at the comfortable fitting, but not 'right feeling' dress like a para-  
zoologist with a new species of pokemon.

"Well now," the woman muttered, walking around and around Miranda with a discerning look that slowly became a smile, "I've certainly done it this time, now haven't I? Feel okay, deary?"

The courier nodded, glancing at her denim jeans and t-shirt with a hint of longing. "Just fine," she assured her, but Irene stood up behind her and nodded knowingly.

"I thought you were the 'tomboy' here, miss," she commented, leaning to one side and catching Misty's eye.

"Not completely," the trainer laughed, glancing down at her own dress whose colour matched her eyes, "I guess my sisters ARE good for something after all then... Creepy."

Irene chuckled, adjusting Miranda's hair a bit and stepping back. "Yes, almost perfect. Hm, these ARE the undergarments you plan on wearing with this dress, right? Okay good," said the seamstress, working so swiftly it was hard to keep track of her, "So tell me, if you don't mind me asking. Is this your first time out together?"

Miranda smiled, finding the flushing of Misty's cheeks endearing. "Well, it'll be the first time we've really gone anywhere nice, or done anything this special," she explained, finding Irene easy to talk to.

"Well," the seamstress warned them both sternly, her voice lowering to a whisper as she glanced over her shoulder, "Just don't let that hack Troy try any of those scummy chef tricks on you."

"Oh, like what?" inquired Misty as Miranda slipped back out of the dress.

Irene met Misty's gaze and looked a bit nervous as she spoke. "I really shouldn't say anything with one of 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue's' waiters out front," she explained as the two leaned in closer to hear, "But I've seen it all. Watering down drinks, serving crappy cuts of meat and telling customers it's fillet minyon, and serving overpriced wine are just the tip of the iceberg! Not that I'm not saying he's going to do any of these things, but I've heard some bad things about him in the culinary community. He gives his whole family a bad name, that one."

"Thanks for the warning," Miranda replied, stepping between Irene and Misty to recover her normal clothing.

"Oh, and be a dear and help your friend out of her dress would you?" asked Irene, "I have to attend to my other customer. I won't be a moment!"

Before they could respond, Irene had disappeared again. Vanishing like a ghost before her friendly voice filtered through the curtain as she laughed at whatever joke the waiter told her.

"Think he knows anything?" asked Miranda in a hushed tone as she carefully pulled the dress down off Misty's shoulders to where it collected near the floor and her friend could step out of it.

"If he does, I doubt that he'd tell us anything," Misty replied, not totally convinced, "He's either hired help, or he's a Rocket. Presumably one that Kathy isn't trying to kill."

Miranda chuckled at the thought as she picked up Misty's dress and hung it on a hanger next to her own. "Well, while I know I may be running the risk of forming a clich'," she said thoughtfully, looking to see if either Irene or the waiter were going to come in at any moment, "but I could send Wraith to check the place out after hours. Although for all we know, this Troy guy's involvement with Kathy is just on a professional level. Villains need to eat too!"

"Possibly," Misty agreed, "But what about the umbreon?"

Miranda nodded. "That's why I'm sending Nezumi too," she explained, "They're both stealthy in their own ways, and together they can handle quite a bit if things go wrong. Now we just have to hope that they all have a big red 'R' above the ovens or on the cooking utensils all have 'Property of Team Rocket' engraved on them."

"You don't sound totally convinced," commented Misty, shuffling back into her normal clothes.

Miranda shrugged, pulling the curtain aside in time to see Irene returning with the ripped jacket. "Not completely, but maybe if we're all there in the same place, something will happen."

"With Frank and Officer Jenny there?" commented Misty under her breath, "Not likely..."

Chapter XIII

"I still can't believe the price," said Misty for the ninth time as the glass doors slid open, giving them access to the Cerulean City Gym.

"Well, she said it'd be cheep," Miranda replied with a shrug, putting the awkward cardboard box she held on the reception desk and checking the time on her watch, "Well, we've got about an hour to get ready... Mind if I make a phone call?"

"Sure," said Misty with a shrug and a hint of mirth as she headed on towards the main area while Miranda reached for the phone, "My sisters have to pay the bill, not me."

Behind her she heard Miranda's short laugh before the vid-phone announced that it had obtained a connection and the woman turned the volume down. "I'll be up stairs!" called Misty over her shoulder, half noting that Miranda waved an affirmative as her sisters came down the stairs.

As they often were, the three sisters were as done up as humanly possible, but this time, their attire was far more formal. Their dresses seemed more like ball gowns than simple formal wear, and Miranda was certain that the way they clung tightly at the waist as well as pushing up at the bosom was excruciatingly uncomfortable.

"What's with the fancy get-up?" inquired Misty, her intuition suddenly sounding an alarm.

"Oh, like I can't believe we so forgot to tell you, little sister!" laughed Violet, giving her best "Oh, I'm so forgetful" pose, "As Cerulean City's Gym Leaders, we received passes to the opening of that new restaurant! Isn't it, like, such a cool coincidence that we only got, like, three? But your friend there went and won you both passes? Pretty neat, eh?"

Misty twitched a little, feeling her heart sink and suddenly using every once of her willpower not to simply grab the three spoiled, manipulative brats and toss them all head first into the pool. 'At least then they'd be late,' she thought sullenly. "Oh, then I guess we'll see you there then," she replied with the false cheer they always ignored anyway, "have fun."

"Oh, but do you know what would be so, like, cool?" asked Lily in a tone that had all the subtlety of an air strike, "If we, like, all went together! Then we could all sit at one big table and talk about old times and stuff!"

Misty felt her insides clench as a sudden anger threatened to cause her to burst. "No..." she said quietly through gritted teeth, somehow containing herself as she clenched her fists and almost crumpled the box containing her new dress before raising her voice to a yell, "You are NOT ruining MY perfect evening with Miranda! Not now not EVER!"

"Oh, like chill out, Misty," commented Violet with a disapproving shake of her head that somehow didn't cause her overly styled dark hair to even so much as move.

"Yeah, like we were only making a suggestion," added Daisy as Lily gave Miranda a friendly yet pretentious smile as she entered the hall, a look of concern cross the courier's face.

"What's wrong?" Miranda inquired, giving the trio a glare before fixing on Misty who stood shaking as she continued to fume.

"Well, like bye then," commented Violet dismissively as they walked away, some how making the farewell seem like an accusation as Miranda went over and put her arms around Misty.

"Anything I can do?" she inquired as Misty breathed through her mouth, her teeth still clenched as her whole body shook.

Her lover shook her head, waiting a few moments after the main doors slid closed again before relaxing and leaning against her beloved. "It's okay," whispered Miranda, holding her close as Misty let herself cry, "Whatever it is, I'm here for you. Do you want me to call home and see if there's another courier in the area who might like our passes-?"

"No!" exclaimed Misty, dropping her package and clinging to Miranda almost desperately. "I'm NOT letting them ruin this!" she sobbed, her face pressed against Miranda's shoulder, "Even if SHE shows up and ruins everything, at least this will still be our special night! And I'm not letting my sisters interferer with that. Not now, not ever."

Miranda nodded, quickly piecing it all together. "Okay," she said softly, gently running her fingers up and down Misty's back in what she hoped was a soothing manner, "We have lots of time to get ready, let's just go upstairs and sit-down for a while."

Misty smiled the slightest bit in spite of herself as Miranda's fingers sought out the tense places and soothed them with a gentle relentlessness. "Alright," she said quietly with a nod, trying to keep her voice level, "Thank you. Oh, and one more thing, Miri."

"Yes?" the courier inquired as Misty took her hand, their fingers intertwining.

"I love you," said Misty, accentuating her words by bringing their joined hands to her lips and kissing Miranda's knuckles, leaving her beloved with a warm feeling that refused to fade even after they'd ventured out into the coming night nearly an hour later...

Chapter XIV

The Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue Restaurant Of International Cuisine had a line up that stretched around the block. It seemed as though more than half of Cerulean City had shown up for the event, and more than half of those seemed to simply want to wait in line with no hope of ever actually getting in. For the most part, just seeing those with special advanced reservations being quickly ushered in amongst a sea of reporters and blinding flashbulbs seemed to be enough for them.

"Gee," commented Miranda, her arm linked through Misty's as they stepped out of their taxi and onto the long red carpet, only to immediately assaulted by the swarm of overly enthusiastic reporters, "it was just a silly contest!"

"They just want the publicity, dear," assured Misty, feeling better, and enjoying the sudden unexpected attention as reporters on their left threw questions at them above the sound of the chattering crowd lined up to the couple's right, "Besides, it's kinda fun to be a bit of celebrity now and then."

"Ms. Lilcamp!" called a small thin man at the back whose arm was just long enough to wedge a microphone between two other reporters, "Is this the lucky lady you wrote your winning ballad about?"

"You bet!" called Miranda over her shoulder as they walked past him, blushing profusely as another reporter from one of the less reputable newspapers found only in convenience stores used an aikido throw to move a smaller man out of her way.

"Is it true that you're not on speaking terms with your famous sisters?" she called out to Misty, practically waving her pen and paper, "And that's why accompanying them this evening!"

Misty glanced over at the woman, her sea green eyes narrowing with fury as she glowered. "That's a family matter," she hissed without breaking stride or loosing the wonderfully elegant feeling she felt wearing something new and beautiful to an expensive restaurant while a hundred some odd people oohed and awed, "Ask Daisy."

Miranda laughed as the doorman let them in immediately. "Isn't she the 'quiet one'?" she inquired as a second man hurried over to take the jackets they'd worn about their shoulders against the chill that blew in off the water.

"Of course!" giggled Misty, as the maitre'd looked up expectantly, "They'll have her stammering for a few minutes before Violet bales her out with some excuse. But I don't mind wasting a trash reporter's time."

As the two entered the dining area of Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue their ears were filled with a gentle cacophony of often laughing voices and live piano music, supplied by a small orchestra. Everywhere they looked, people in fancy dresses and expensive suits sat at huge round tables while waiters and waitresses attended to their needs, clad in the uniform they'd seen at Irene's shop. Every table was set with crystal glasses, and silverware that was actually silver, and plates, bowls and coffee cups that were worth more than Miranda made in a year.

Above them were three immense chandeliers, set in a perfect triangle and giving the room just enough light that small, slow burning white candles had to be set at each table. Floor was done over in a dark red carpet, guaranteed to hide stains, and the walls had been decorated with three-dimensional wall hangings of various pokemon in battle, although someone had painted the effects of their 'special' attacks directly onto the wall in a way that made it seem more real.

"Excuse me, ladies," the well-dressed maitre'd with a light German accent said with a politeness that bordered on superhuman, "but your table is ready, and your other guests have already arrived."

"Other guests?" asked Miranda, her tone flattening as her stormy gray eyes narrowed behind her shimmering glasses.

"Ah, yes!" the man said even more apologetically, "It sees that the seating arrangements are not quite what we had hoped for, so we've had to put some of our patrons at group tables. Please forgive us, but it was decided that since you were all family-"

"Family!" exclaimed Misty in a harsh whisper, somehow managing to keep her voice down along with her barely contained anger.

The maitre'd gave a sad smile, nodding apologetically. "Yes," he explained, indicating Misty, "Your sisters, if I'm not mistaken?"

"Any chance of sitting with my Uncle?" inquired Miranda hopefully as Misty gripped her hand a tightly, her knuckles turning white.

"The name?"

"Oh, he's with Pokeforce," she explained, "Name's Frank...?"

The man checked his reservation book and shook his head sadly. "No, I am very sorry, miss," he explained, no longer willing to make eye contact with the couple, "But that table is full. Although I'm pleased to say that he's sitting with both our very own Officer Jenny, the Festival Coordinator Todd Burke, his wife Nancy, Professor Myria, and the other City Councilors."

Miranda glanced over at Misty. "We could just go," she offered, but Misty shook her head.

"No," she said simply, brushing her bangs out of her eyes in an unaccustomed gesture since they'd both chosen to wear their hair down, "As I said, their not ruining this."

With her head held high, and her shoulders straight, Misty walked past the overly apologetic man and strode into the room on Miranda's arm as though no force on earth could stop her. With a quick glance at the table Frank was sitting at, she caught the gazes of her three sisters and put on her most sincere smile.

"So glad you could make it," she said civilly through gritted teeth, only half noticing as Miranda pulled her chair out for her.

"Like, I wasn't sure if you'd show or not," commented Violet casually, idly waving a bread stick she had no intention of eating.

"Gee, I guess I loose the bet then," commented Lily, not even flinching when both Misty and Miranda glared at her.

"Wouldn't have missed it for the world," replied Miranda briskly, sitting in one of the high-backed, and mildly uncomfortable chairs between Daisy and Misty as she tried to catch Frank's eye.

Across the room, and past several other crowded tables, a raised platform had been set up with a long table. It had been specially reserved for the City Councilors, which included two middle aged men and women Miranda didn't recognize, as well as Professor Myria and the Festival coordinator who had over seen the poetry contest and his wife. Officer's Jenny and Frank had also been given places, and Miranda found it odd that Misty's sister Violet hadn't been asked to sit at the table, seeing as she was the City's Gym Leader.

It also didn't take much for her to infer that the unpleasantly scowling woman beside the Festival Coordinator was his wife. The small, disapproving woman seemed to be most upset by whatever joke Frank was leaning across Jenny to tell her husband, who was laughing almost to the point of hysteria.

Officer Jenny for her part, just shook her head at him, and immediately regretted it. Her one eye that hadn't been bandaged up snapped closed as she gritted her teeth and shuffled uncomfortably in her seat, adjusting her right arm in its sling.

"So," came Violet's voice, interrupting Miranda's attempts to get her almost-Uncle's attention, "Did you hear about what happened to Jenny?"

Miranda glanced over at the woman, who was balancing her chin on her linked fingers and smiling conspiratorially. "Yes, we were there," replied Miranda, suddenly regretting her lover's decision to stay as she felt something touch her ankle and lift the hem of her dress.

"Oh? That wasn't YOUR gastly that saved Officer Jenny, was it?" inquired Lily, glancing over at her elder sibling and smiling at her sudden pained expression. Miranda had slammed her feet together on either side of Violet's ankle.

"Yes, it was Wraith and Officer Frank's growlithe Bow," confirmed Misty, making a point of moving her chair a little closer to Miranda's and holding her hand under the table, "And Wraith's a haunter now. Remember?"

"Ghosts are ghosts," commented Violet with a shrug, shaking out her foot to regain feeling as Daisy jumped a little. She'd put her hand on Miranda's thigh and suddenly found the courier's nails digging into her skin.

"And they can all be quite dangerous," Miranda replied like nothing had happened, "But I've been meaning to ask you. Do any of you know anything about a rumor involving the formation of a ninth gym? Flint in Pewter mentioned it, but..."

"Oh, that!" laughed Violet, leaning back and provocatively tossing her long dark hair over her shoulders as she ignored Misty's sudden scowl, "I'm surprised you don't know already, it's in your home town."

"It is!" exclaimed Misty and Miranda at the same time, their further questions being silenced as the background music came to a suddenly halt and several people began applauding.

"Oh!" gasped Lily, excited covering her mouth with her hands like a star struck otaku, "It's HIM!"

"Gary!" whispered Miranda into Misty's ear, and nearly causing the girl to spit out the water she'd been drinking.

Several people had leapt to their feet, making it necessary for their table to do the same, if only to see if not applaud. But it soon became clear who the new center of attention was. Entering the room, in Chef's whites that were easily as expensive as any Armani suit and being followed by an alakazam in a chef's hat and wielding a tray of h'orderves was none other than Chef Troy.

With a sly, almost forced smile, the tall man waved politely to the crowd before motioning for silence. "Welcome, my friends," he proclaimed, his German accent slipping out from time to time, "To my greatest endeavor since 'Coffee Armageddon'... 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue!'"

There was more applause, and Miranda made quiet note of who applauded the loudest as she clapped politely, ignoring her Uncle's rather theatrical performance of it. She knew it was only because Chef Troy was feeding him. It was the Festival Coordinator and his wife, though; who seemed to be the most appreciative, exchanging knowing glances with Troy as the alakazam brought the tray to the head table.

"This restaurant of international cuisine," continued Chef Troy, turning slowly so that everyone could catch a glimpse of the tight smile he wore, and the few reporters who were allowed in could get pictures of his gleaming, all too white teeth through his well-  
groomed goatee, "Promises one thing to it's patrons. A dining experience unlike any other offered on this continent, or in the entire world!"

Once again he was interrupted by applause and a few happy shouts, but the Chef seemed unperturbed, even as Frank grabbed a rather large handful of something Miranda couldn't identify except to say that it was on a cracker.

"Here at MY restaurant," Troy went on, his wary tone indicating that he wasn't one for long speeches, but wanted people to know who to thank at the end of the evening, "you will be able to not just eat, but 'experience' taste sensations unlike any other you have, or ever will have again! Unless of course you're a repeat customer."

There was a chorus of gentle laughter, as Violet sighed heavily, tossing her breadstick into Misty's glass of water before she could take another sip. "Just get over it," she muttered, shaking her head at Lily for swooning so badly, and ignoring Misty's dark glare, "And for that matter, over yourself."

Miranda contemplated giving her a kick under the table the first chance she got, but couldn't help agree with the sentiment. 'Oh well,' she thought, retrieving the bread stick from her partner's glass and pointedly tossing it back into Violet's, 'At least the food is free.'

"But I have droned on long enough!" announced Chef Troy as his alakazam teleported to his side with a loud -POP!- that caused a few people to jump in their seats, "My staff will be along shortly to take your orders so that you may also sample our food, not just hear about it."

There was an appreciative murmur as their table joined the rest in sitting down, and as Miranda picked up the blue velvet menu book, bound by gold thread with the restaurant logo on the cover, she felt a gentle tap upon her foot.

Looking up with a scowl, she saw Violet smile at her mischievously as she brought the sopping wet breadstick to her lips, and provocatively pushed it against them. For a moment her dark eyes fluttered a bit, as if enjoying herself far too much, whilst parting her lips ever so slightly to allow the breadstick entrance.

"Wrong gender," whispered Miranda with a chuckle, hiding behind her menu and laughing as Violet bit the breadstick in half in frustration.

"Must you?" inquired Misty rhetorically, before going back to her own and giving a startled look as she realized that not a single item was to be found with a listed price.

"Just remember it's free, dear," said Miranda, leaning close with a hand upon Misty's knee.

"Oh, before I forget," whispered Misty back, lifting her menu to hide herself from her sisters, "Did you happen to notice that alakazam?"

Miranda nodded. "Same one?"

"I think so," her lover replied, glancing at the double swinging doors that lead to the kitchen, "But I'm no expert. Too bad Professor Myria or your friend Zack weren't there. I'm sure they'd-"

But her train of thought was interrupted by a loud cough and the two turned to see the waiter they'd seen at Irene's looming over them in his tacky blue and gold suit. "Are you ready to order, ladies?"

Misty and Miranda exchanged glances and quickly chose the first thing that sounded good on their menus. "I'll have the soulaki platter," replied Miranda.

"Oh, same for me, I guess," added Misty, too annoyed at her sisters to have really paid attention to her menu and just then noticing that the man simply nodded, and didn't seem to have to write anything down as he turned his attention to her three pretentious siblings.

"Oh, I'll just have the cannolli," replied Violet in a bored tone.

"Souffle," said Lily quickly, tearing her gaze away from his stunning blue eyes.

"I'll have the teriyaki," finished Daisy.

"Spearow or tauros?"

"Oh, spearow I guess," she replied with a shy smile and a wave of her hand.

"Very well then," said the waiter simply giving Miranda a slightly disapproving look as her watch chimed Beethoven's fifth, "And to drink?"

"Tea, green if possible, Earl Gray if not. Orange pekoe and I sue," the courier replied with a wry grin, pushing back her chair awkwardly and getting to her feet before leaning down kiss Misty on the cheek, "I'll just be a minute."

"Oh, I'll just have what she's having," said Misty, feeling her heart sink a little as Miranda glided off, nearly tripping over her gown as she made a sharp left and hurried off towards the pay phones at the back of the restaurant.

"Mineral water for the three of us," added Violet, catching the waiter's eye and giving him a mischievous look that made Lily glare at her.

"You know," commented Misty as the man walked away, his shoes making no sound across the carpeted floor, "'Evian' is just 'Naive' spelt backwards. Not bad for water brought to us by a guy in his backyard wielding a garden hose and a few thousand clear-  
plastic bottles, eh?"

Lily suppressed a chuckle as Violet glowered at their youngest sister. "Ya know," she said in a condescending tone, meeting Misty's gaze with a knowing look, "That Miranda's like, so totally using you."

Misty leaned back, folding her arms across her chest as she gave her sister a disbelieving look. "And just how do you figure that?" she asked, not really caring whether her sibling answered, but unwilling to simply ignore the slight.

"Well, you know," continued Violet as all three sisters leaned in closer, "She's a courier. Like, you know how 'they' are."

"That's right," agreed Daisy.

"Yeah, like, she's probably got two or three lovers in every town," added Lily; "She's just stringing you along little sister. Just like that Ash guy you used to hang around with."

"THAT," warned Misty, keeping her voice low and containing her anger as best she could, gripping the table so hard her knuckles had turned white, "Will be quite enough!"

Misty's anger was abruptly halted as she spotted the dark blue of Miranda's dress as she awkwardly hurried back to the table as if on cue. "Forget something, dear?" inquired Misty, reserving the edge in her tone solely for her trio of siblings.

"Y-yes," said Miranda breathlessly, kneeling beside Misty's chair and taking her hand, her cloudy gray eyes fully of mischief.

"What's wrong?" her lover asked, well aware of the looks they were getting from the three sisters, "What did you forget?"

Miranda's lips formed a wide smile as she leaned up towards her. "I forgot," she said just loud enough for the others to hear, "To tell you 'I love you.'"

Before Misty could stammer out a reply, she felt Miranda's lips pressed against her own for a moment before the courier rushed off again to take care of her mysterious phone call. And for a long moment, Misty could only stare after her, her face flushing with both embarrassment and endearment.

"Oh, like I'm so sure," she heard Violet reply to something Daisy said, bringing Misty back to reality even as Lily waved her hand in front of her face.

"Like, hello? Earth to Misty!" she called impatiently, causing her sister to sigh heavily, shaking her head as the moment faded all to quickly.

"What now?" she muttered, giving her sister an annoyed look that was returned by one of astonishment.

"Like, you've been sitting there staring off into space for way too long," said Lily, tossing her dark red hair over her shoulder.

"For sure," agreed Violet, shaking her head in dismayed disapproval as she idly sipped her drink, "I think you're way too taken with this girl, Misty. I think she's starting to make you crazy."

"What's that supposed to mean!" growled Misty through gritted teeth, clenching her fists and really wishing that there weren't so many witnesses.

"Ooh, looks like our little sister's still got all those anger management problems," chuckled Lily all too coolly.

"Well," spat Misty, unable to rein her venomous tone as she turned her dark look to her second oldest sibling, "At least I don't sleep with everything that'll hold still long enough!"

Daisy and Violet stifled a laugh as Lily began to stammer out a reply, only to be interrupted by an expected polite inquiry.

"Problem?" inquired Miranda who had suddenly appeared, her arm linked through her Uncle's.

"Not at all," assured Violet, smiling up at Frank, who had been forced to wear his dress uniform, "Just discussing family business. Care to join us Officer?"

"Just for minute," said Officer Frank with a shrug, taking the empty seat beside Misty as his almost-niece sat down, "I just wanted to get away from those old fogies for a few minutes and try to find out who this strange woman is..."

Miranda turned her head, desperately trying to hide her smirk as she glared at her Uncle. "I thought I warned you?" she said through gritted teeth as Misty laughed.

"I didn't say anything," chuckled Frank, glancing over his shoulder and waving at Jenny.

"So how is she?" inquired Misty with concern look in Jenny's direction and frowning when the woman winced when she tried to smile back at Frank.

"The doc's say she'll live. The naninte treatment managed to heal the worst of it, but the rest is up to her, I'm afraid," explained Frank, his eyes going wide for a moment as Lily slid her leg around his possessively, "But I'm not leaving 'till she's all healed up."

"Oh, so like now you're leaving us?" pouted Lily as Frank caught his breath, trying to move closer to Misty and away from the woman's rather blatant attempts at seduction as he felt a hand upon his knee.

"Y-yes, actually," he stammered, turning to his niece and pointedly ignored the delicate seeming hand that was moving slowly up his leg and causing his voice to go up an octave, "I- I called you're Aunt, Miri."

"You did!" she exclaimed happily, almost forgetting to stomp down hard on Violet's foot as the woman tried to slide her toe up her bare leg, "How'd it go? What'd she say?"

Frank smiled, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath as he ignored Lily's sudden pout. "Well, it's like I said," he explained in the tone he reserved for story telling, "She's a wonderful woman. There's no way I could ever do better, and I certainly don't deserve her." He paused for effect, long enough to reach under the table and bend Lily's index finger far enough back for her to get the point. "But Laurna wants me to head back to Lavender first chance I get. So as soon as Jen's all healed up, I'm puttin' in for a transfer. It's about time Lavender had a decent cop in town."

"We don't even have a Jenny," agreed Miranda sympathetically, although her tone was somewhat thankful, "But that'll give me another reason to read home in October."

"Why wait?" inquired Frank, his tone becoming serious, "Your mother misses you."

"Let's not start that again," muttered Miranda, shaking her head and pushing her glasses back up her nose, "I hate it when Bob tells me that on the phone every time I get a dispatch call, and I don't need it from you too, Uncle."

"I know," said Frank with a shrug as the waiter returned with their drinks, "But anyway, I'd better get back there before Myria dumps water over Ms. Burke's head like she's been threatening to."

"She's the Festival Coordinator's wife, right?" inquired Misty, turning in her seat in time to see Professor Myria grin broadly at the annoyed looking elderly woman next to her, clutching the pitcher of water in both small hands with a mischievous glint in her emerald eyes.

Frank nodded. "The best expletive to describe her would be an insult to Bow, so forget it," he commented, "She's been in a bit of a snit since they got here, but she was happy to see Chef Troy, let me tell ya."

"I kinda noticed," replied Miranda, recalling that the woman was amongst the first to leap to her feet and applaud when he'd entered, and the first to laugh at his lame joke.

"Yeah," continued Frank, oblivious to the displeased look the waiter gave him, "She's rather excitable for someone her age. I guess old Todd finally brought her around."

"She didn't like him at first?" asked Miranda, remembering how her first impression of the Chef wasn't helped by the presence of the man's umbreon.

Frank nodded, forgetting that he had a drink waiting for him at his table. "Couldn't stand him!" he mused, "She was the strongest voice on the Council against allowing him to set up shop here. Especially after that fiasco with his second cousin thrice removed in Neon town."

"Let me guess," interjected Misty dryly, "His name is Troy too?"

"Um, yeah," commented Frank, a little bewildered, "Why?"

"No reason," she assured, bowing her head in dismay.

"Anyway, I'd better get going. Stay out of trouble, Miri."

"As if!" called Miranda to her retreating uncle, unable to keep from smiling as Misty looked up at the ceiling and mouthed the words, "Why? Aren't Jenny's and Joy's enough!"

"So," asked Miranda briskly, looking pointedly at Violet, "You were saying about the new gym?"

Violet nodded, taking a sip of her extra pretentious drink before speaking. "Well, like I said," she replied, licking her lips and using her drink as an excuse, "I'm like, totally astonished that you haven't heard. 'Cause like, it's in your home town, don't'cha know."

"Lavender?" said Miranda, her astonishment genuine as opposed to Violet's more pretentious slant on it.

"Oh, you bet!" chuckled Lily, giving Officer Frank a final hungry look as he sat back down at his own table, "Some pokemon professor or other's like totally taking care of it."

"Professor Laurna!" exclaimed Miranda, blushing as she looked down at the table meekly and Misty gave her a gentle, teasing nudge with her shoulder, giggling at the sudden out burst.

"You, you like know her?" inquired Daisy quietly, her fingers entwining as single lock of hair as she smiled at Miranda.

The woman nodded. "She's my aunt," the courier explained, "She came to Lavender with my mother and father, and apparently it was as though she was meant to be there. There isn't a pokemon professor on the planet who knows more about ghost types than her. Apparently her gengar was an arbok once, but she won't tell me how Viper died."

The three sisters gave Miranda looks that ranged from curious to confused. "But like, Miranda," commented Violet, as always the first to speak, "Aren't 'ghosts' just like, sentient balls of gas? Sorta like grimers and muks?"

Miranda smiled, seizing the opportunity. "No," she said curtly, leaning back in her chair with her eyes closed as she contemplated the question, "No they are not. Ghosts, from gastlies to gengars were all once living, breathing pokemon."

She waited a moment for her words to sink in, to have their desired effect. "No one is completely certain why it happens," she explained, opening one gray eye to see the look of morbid fascination upon their faces, "but sometimes pokemon who die just don't pass on. Something causes them to cling to this plane. Unfortunately, though, they have no memories of their former lives, so there's no real way to help them. But I suppose that's what the Tower is for. It gives them a place to dwell."

"Uh-until someone captures them, you mean," Lily stammered, her suddenly wide eyes betraying just how unnerved she felt.

Miranda shrugged. "Well, sometimes they don't stay for long," she replied, taking Misty's suddenly cold hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze, "Most ghosts are captured outside the Tower, cause only a lunatic would actually go in there hunting one."

"Why- why is that?" gulped Daisy, looking even paler than usual.

Miranda glanced at Misty, who looked up at her with pleading eyes. "It's just not safe," she finished, putting her arm around Misty and giving her a reassuring hug as Daisy shivered all over.

"Anyone, like you know, go in to the Tower, and like, totally never come out again?" inquired Violet with a hint of malice in her voice, not caring about the effect the story was having on Daisy, instead concentrating on the rather unpleasant expression crossing her youngest sibling's face.

Miranda took a deep breath, not prying her gaze away from Misty. "No," she lied, for her lover's benefit, pulling a number out of the ether, "Not in oh, at least hundred years." "Look," she said, glancing over at Violet, "If you really care, go to Lavender Town for the Halloween celebrations and you'll hear all about the Tower then. My Aunt Laurna does this simply amazing show with her troupe. Some of the illusions they weave while she tells the story are simply amazing!"

Violet muttered something about doing just that, but Miranda, who leaned in closer to Misty, ignored her half-hearted tone. "Sorry, about that," she said quietly, "I keep forgetting you don't like ghosts very much."

Misty nodded, smiling weakly. "It's okay," she assured, "I'm getting used to Wraith. I mean, intellectually I know he won't hurt me, it's just..."

"I know," said Miranda with a smile and a gentle hug, "It's okay, my step-father's lived in Lavender for nearly seven years, and he's still terrified of them. Although my Mom's actually stared down wild ones."

"Sounds like your mom's scarier than the ghosts!" chuckled Misty, the colour returning to her cheeks even as Daisy got up from the table and hurried to the restroom, looking more than a little green.

Miranda grinned, amused by the sentiment. "Only when she's angry," she assured, "This is a 'Mom' we're talking about here..."

The rest of the dinner went smoothly, with the only real interruption being when Ms. Burke began yelling at Frank for eating his abesynian platter with his left hand, to which the Pokeforce Officer replied, "But I'm ambidextrous!" And then he merely laughed at the dirty look their waiter gave him when he said, "Oh, this is so unspicy I can put it in my eye!"

By eight o'clock, Misty and Miranda had finished eating, and both were just a little anxious to go. With a glance at her empty plate, wondering where it all could have gone, Miranda turned to flag down their waiter.

"So," inquired Misty briskly, wiping her mouth with napkin that cost more than everyone at the table combined made in a year and catching Violet staring longingly at Miranda, "Are you three heading home after this?"

"Like, no way!" exclaimed Lily before Violet could speak, and receiving a kick under the table for it, "As if! Like, we're all dressed up, we might as well go and do something!"

"Not a bad idea," agreed Miranda with a sly grin as the waiter returned, "Have a nice time."

"Is that everything?" the man inquired, his tone a touch suspicious.

"That'll do," Miranda assured him, "Unless there's some kind of hidden charge that I'm unaware of...?"

"Oh no," assured the waiter with an insincere smile that seemed to be more of a sneer, "Your meals are complimentary."

"Good," said Miranda curtly, getting to her feet at the same time as Misty, sensing the her lover's sudden urgency to away from her siblings, "Oh, and thank you."

The waiter nodded as he wrote out the bill that Violet, Lily and Daisy would have to share, a smirk crossing his face as Misty and Miranda almost ran across the room. By the time they'd reached Frank, they were both laughing at the strangely guilty feeling they both felt at walking away from a meal, that they both had to admit was incredible, without paying.

"Heading out?" inquired Frank as they approached; his fingers stained red from the sauce as he scooped up the last of his meal with a strange, air-bubble infested injera flat bread.

Miranda nodded, smiling as she held Misty's hand. "Actually, I was thinking of maybe going for Coffee at Irene's," she explained, glancing at Misty, "If you're up for it?"

"Definitely!" her lover replied, nodding vigorously, "At least then we can get away from my sisters without having to lock a door behind us."

"Ah, siblings," chuckled Frank, looking thoughtful before finishing off his meal and talking with his mouth full, "I'll bet I have a million of 'em!"

"He's an orphan. Adopted shortly after birth," explained Miranda, suddenly anxious to get out into the cool night air as the stifling dry warmth of the dining room was only made worse by the look of unbridled contempt Ms. Burke gave her.

"Then we have something in common," replied Misty with a sad smile, "Did you know them? Your parents I mean?"

Frank yawned, shaking his head. "Nope," he said, tapping the table in front of Jenny who had dozed off with her large bowl of soup unfinished, "Never had the pleasure. Anyway, I have to get my commanding officer home before people start talking. Again. Say, need a ride?"

"They gave you another car?" inquired Miranda with a smirk that made her Uncle give her a sarcastic grin that would do Nezumi proud.

"It's Jen's," he confessed, helping a very worn out Officer Jenny to her feet and saying goodbye to the people at his table, "So? Shall we...?"

Chapter XV

Frank pulled Officer Jenny's squad car up in front of 'Irene's Textile and Coffee Shop' less than ten minutes later, thankful that Jenny was in no condition to complain about his driving.

"Here ya go," he said brightly, unlocking the back doors so his niece and her partner could leave the car, "That'll be twelve ninety five!"

"Oh, ha, ha," laughed Miranda sarcastically, making her Uncle smile and thankful to be out of the cramped back seat, "Thanks, though."

Frank shrugged, his infectious grin never leaving his face. "No problem, lady," he assured, "Just have a good time, that's all I ask."

Miranda nodded, putting her arm around Misty as Frank rolled up his window and drove away. "Thanks again!" called Misty, only half believing that they were finally free of the stifling, life-  
draining presence of her sisters, before glancing up at Miranda with a happy smile. "So? Shall we...?"

There were two other couples in Irene's quiet little shop, which barely took notice as they entered, and neither could blame them. The establishment was in full 'coffee shop' mode, with the lights dimmed so that small candles on the tables were necessary, soft, unobtrusive music filling the air, and the smell of freshly ground coffee kept everyone awake whether they liked it or not.

"Hello again," said Irene in a friendly, yet subdued tone, meeting them almost magically at the door as they entered, "Table for two?"

"Yes, please," laughed Miranda, the irony of the question improving her mood.

"I hope the food wasn't too bad at Troy's," the woman commented sullenly, leading them both to a pair of comfortable looking chairs with a low table between them, "I can fix you something if you'd like?"

"No, actually it was really good," assured Miranda, "It was just the company and the service we could have done without."

"Well..." said Misty, bowing her head and looking up at Irene a little guiltily through her bangs, "We didn't stay for desert, and I always have room for ice-cream. If you have it...?"

"Of course!" the woman laughed in the "think nothing of it" tone only a mother could muster, "All I have left, though, is butterscotch ripple. Is that okay?"

"Oh, fine. Just great!" laughed Misty, sitting carefully down in the chair that would allow her to see the entire room as Miranda found her way awkwardly into the one opposite.

"Stupid dress," the woman muttered, much to Misty and Irene's amusement.

"Gee," teased Misty, crossing her legs as Miranda finally sat down and smoothed out the frustrating garment, "You're even more of a tomboy than I am!"

Miranda finally got comfortable with her hands on the arms of the mauve coloured chair she sat in and smiled. "My mom's worse," she confessed as Irene hurried off, "She's worn a dress twice in her life. And both of those were wedding dresses."

Misty glanced out the window looking thoughtfully out at the dark street for a moment. "Miranda?" she asked quietly without turning to face her.

"Yes?"

Misty took in a long slow breath, noticing the way their reflections eyes met on the surface of the window. "When, when things calm down in our lives," she began, finding it difficult to find the right words, "When Kathy is behind bars, and I've gone up against the League and maybe if you're willing to become a city bound courier... Would you? I mean, I know that such a thing is possible but..."

"Yes," repeated Miranda, leaning across the table and taking Misty's hand in her own, causing her beloved to turn to face her, "But not until we're both ready. Some things shouldn't be rushed."

For a long moment, the two simple sat, quietly staring into each other's eyes until Misty realized she was shaking, and Miranda felt as though her heart were about to burst. "But," she said, bringing her lover's fingers to her lips, kissing them gently, "You're wearing the dress."

Misty snickered, bowing her head as she blushed. "That's negotiable," she promised, glancing over as Irene glided towards them and put down a tray between them before moving on without saying a word, "But thank you for the sentiment. It's good to know you're serious... About us I mean."

"Absolutely," promised Miranda, shaking her head at the thought of being anything but, "Fifty or sixty years from now I intend to be sitting across from you, looking into your eyes and feeling the same love I feel now. Only stronger."

Misty nodded, a smile that wouldn't leave set upon her face as she sat unable to look away for several long moments as the quiet sounds of the other patrons filled the void of silence that neither of them seemed to notice. After a while, though, the teapot stopped steaming, and their ice cream began to melt. The candles burned lower, and the ticking of a clock somewhere in the shop became apparent.

"Miri, I-" she began finally, at last finding the words to express the feelings that were overwhelming her, only to be cut off by the sound of the door being thrown violently open.

The noise startled nearly everyone in the restaurant, and Miranda lost her glasses in an attempt to turn towards the source of the sound that had so rudely interrupted their moment.

The doorway was now filled by a short, thin woman who looked to be about Irene's actual age under the fourteen layers of makeup she wore. The woman's wary pale blue eyes scanned the room with more than a hint of annoyance as the breeze blew at the long, spindly strands of her darkly dyed reddish hair.

"Irene!" she called out drunkenly, waving the wine glass she held in her hand about, slopping her drink across the hardwood floor and seeming not to care, "Irene, I can't take it any more!"

After leaning against the doorframe for a moment, the woman staggered into the room like she owned the place, and tossed her long, tacky looking Winter coat off her shoulders, onto the floor. She then proceeded to walk over to the serving counter and hit the little bell repeatedly, assuring the end of any special ambiance in the room.

"Oh, hello, Rose," said Irene in a civil tone as she came out of the back room knitting a long scarf that consisted of large alternating, varying in sized squares of light brown, purplish-  
red, orange beige, off white and a rather dull shade of yellow, "What's wrong THIS time?"

The inebriated woman's unsteady gaze fixed on the concerned looking woman's face with a look of complete contempt, which Irene returned with a gentle smile. "What's wrong?" muttered Rose drunkenly, turning to Irene's patrons with an awful laugh, "What's wrong she says! Ha! What's wrong is that you're putting me out of business! That's what's wrong!"

Irene sighed sympathetically. "It happened again, didn't it?" she asked in her most kindly tone, but it was obvious that she was on the verge of laughing.

"Yes! Yes it happened again!" exclaimed Rose in an accusing tone, turning back to Irene and finishing her wine, "And this time there wasn't just one of them! This time there were a dozen! A dozen women standing outside my shop in wedding dresses, all laughing, mocking and scorning me! Me! A world-class designer, while you! You! Somebody's freakin' mom sits here in your little shop of horrors churning out several thousand-credit dresses for a few hundred! It's just not fair I tell you! It's not fair, Irene! It's not fair at all!"

"I believe that'll be quite enough, Rose," Irene said in a warning tone as she stepped forward, causing her uninvited guest to slowly back away, "Unless you want me to call Officer Frank to boot you out again!"

"Fine! I'll go," replied Rose, her words becoming more slurred as Irene ushered her outside, "But just tell me. How do you do it Irene? How do you do it? Just tell me!"

Irene smiled sweetly as she gave Rose a gentle shove. "It's quite simple, really," she said in her most sympathetic and endearing tone, "As you said. I'm a mom. I simply make my products with love!"

With that, Irene slammed the door in her competitor's face before turning towards her suddenly applauding patrons. "Thank you," she said with a wide, embarrassed smile, bowing her head as she moved back behind the counter where she'd left her knitting, "But I'm sorry you all had to see that."

Everyone seemed to agree that it was fine, but something she said had caught Miranda's attention. "Um, excuse me," she inquired as Misty chuckled while trying to eat some of her ice-cream before it melted, "But did you say 'Officer Frank'?"

"Why yes, dear," said Irene with a smile as her hands moved at an incredible rate, churning out the long scarf as though it were nothing, "Very nice boy. Comes in every morning, brings me a free newspaper and has an Irish coffee. I just wish he'd finally patch things up with that Laurna girl. It's all he talks about some days. Why? Do you know him?"

Miranda smiled, amusement shining in her eyes as she retrieved her glasses from the floor thankfully undamaged. "Actually, I'll be his niece if he ever does patch things up with her."

"Oh, I see!" chuckled Irene, "Well, be sure to point him in the right direction if you can. I hate to see good people so sad. Oh, please excuse me, duty calls..."

Miranda turned back to Misty as Irene shuffled over to one of the other tables, trailing her multi-coloured scarf behind her. "Small world, I guess," she mused, finally pouring herself some tea before it got too cold.

"Definitely," commented Misty watching as Irene said goodbye to one of the other couples, still amazed at how well the woman handled her offensively belligerent competitor, "But, there's something I'm a little concerned about."

Miranda looked up, a worried look crossing her face as she felt her heart sink a little. "Do tell," she encouraged, setting down her tea, "I'm here to listen."

Misty nodded, looking a little embarrassed. "Well, it's about earlier," she explained, "You know, when I found out that my sisters were going to be at the restaurant, and when I saw that we had to share a table... And once when you were on the phone, too. I just kinda lost my temper, and I just wanted to apologize for that."

Her lover's face went from baring a look of concern, to relieved amusement almost instantly. "You're apologizing for being yourself, dear?" she inquired, smiling broadly and taking Misty's hand, "Trust me, I went into this relationship with my eyes open. And you know that I don't mind that side of you. Heck, if you were completely shy and passive I very much doubt that you'd have even sparked my interest."

Misty looked thoughtful for a second and inquired mirthfully, "Are you saying that you only love me for my personality?"

"Um, well I think you're really cute too!" stammered Miranda in mock fear as Misty laughed.

"That's better!" she replied, wagging her ice-cream laden spoon at the courier in a non-seriously scolding manner, causing Miranda laugh as well.

"But you know," said Misty finally, scooping out more ice-cream and swallowing it down greedily before continuing, "Violet did say something rather odd while you were away."

"Odd?" inquired Miranda, looking a little nervous.

"Yes," her lover continued in a half serious tone, leaning forward meaningfully and catching Miranda's eye, "She said that you were 'using me'."

Miranda tried to contain a laugh, but failed. "Using you?" she snickered, covering her mouth as she swallowed her mouthful of tea.

"Misty nodded. "Pretty crazy, eh?"

The courier nodded slowly, the look in her eye an unmistakable sign that she'd thought of something and would burst if she didn't let it out. "Actually," she said conversationally, setting down her tea cup and poking at her mostly liquefied ice-cream, "I am."

"Really?" relied Misty, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms, a slight smile crossing her face. Half-sensing what was to come.

Miranda nodded. "Yes," she confessed, watching as she twirled her spoon around the goopy mess her bowl of ice cream had become, "I am using you, my dear. I'm using you to have someone to talk to. I'm using you to have a shoulder to cry on. I'm using you as a source of inspiration. I'm using you to fulfill my purely selfish need to 'be there for someone'. But above all else-" Miranda glanced up at her beloved, her heart swelling as she saw the way Misty's sea-green eyes sparkled in the candlelight- "I'm using you so that I'll have someone to love. I hope you understand."

"Completely," whispered Misty, reaching out and taking Miranda's hand, squeezing it meaningfully as she spoke, "I love you, Miri..."

Chapter XVI An hour slipped by without either of them noticing, and only the sound of Irene locking the door as the last couple exited the shop snapped them both back into reality.

"Oh, sorry!" exclaimed Miranda, struggling awkwardly to her feet, "I wasn't keeping track of the time."

"That's okay," Irene assured them with a motherly smile, "Can I offer you a ride home?"

"You- you really don't have to," stammered Miranda, amazed by the offer even as Irene put on her Fall jacket and looked at them both expectantly, obviously unwilling to take 'no' for an answer.

"Well I guess we can't really say no," replied Misty, getting to her feet without a problem.

"That's right," assured Irene with an amused look as she threw on the scarf she had long since finished knitting and quickly moved about the room blowing out the candles.

"Oh yeah, how much do we owe you?" inquired Miranda.

"Don't worry about it," said Irene with a dismissive wave of her hand as she came back, unlocked the door and shut out the few dim lights, "You had to endure that pompous jerk, Troy's posturing for an evening, not to mention his so called food. So it's on me. So, where are you guys staying?"

"The Gym actually," explained Misty as they ventured into the parking lot which was empty except for one of the small, box-like electrically driven cars most people were forced to drive.

"Really?" commented Irene in amazement, pointing her key chain at the vehicle and disengaging the alarm, "Are you related to the owners?"

Misty smiled, trying not to laugh. "I'm their sister."

Irene did a double take and laughed. "Sorry," she apologized, opening her door, "But you're... Oh, sorry. Never mind."

"No, no," assured Misty with amusement as she and Miranda got into the back seat, "Please, speak your mind."

Irene nodded as she adjusted the mirror. "I was just going to say, you're far too polite. Not to mention, nice. I had your sisters in my store once, but they took one look at the place and left. There's no pleasing some people, I guess."

"Especially not them!" agreed Misty with a laugh, moving closer to Miranda and taking her hand as the car sped almost silently out of the parking lot.

On impulse, Misty put her head on her lover's shoulder, thinking about the hard, narrow bed they'd have to share once they got home. 'Oh well,' she thought ruefully, 'it may be little more than an overgrown cot, but at least I'm the one sharing it with Miranda...'

Chapter XVII

The Gym was dark when they arrived, and as they entered the living quarters it was obvious that Misty's sisters had yet to arrive. Feeling strangely guilty, Miranda followed her lover down the dark hallway. Their fingers linked as they hurried quietly past several closed doors and darkened doorways, a strange aura of mischief permeating the scene.

At the end of the hall, Misty turned and embraced Miranda. With a giggle as they pressed their lips together, she turned her lover around and stepped forward until Miranda's back pressed against the nearest door.

As both their hands roamed freely, gliding across the rustling fabric of their dresses and their lips pressed firmly, almost desperately together, Miranda felt a mildly uncomfortable pressure upon her back. Panting, she tilted her head up, only to find Misty hungrily kissing along her neck, giggling as she sought out her lover's lips.

"Hold on a sec," whispered, realizing what the pressure at her back was caused by. It was the flat wooden carving of a five-  
pointed staryu. The name "Misty" stenciled across it, marking the room as hers. Miranda turned her head to one side, listening carefully at the door and laughing as Misty stood on her toes to playfully nibble Miranda's earlobe.

"Hey, no fair!" she chided in a silly tone, reaching down to take two firm handfuls of Misty's bottom and chuckling quietly as her lover gasped a little.

"Hm, what can be in my room," pondered Misty in a playful tone as she reached up and idly coiled Miranda's long dark hair around several of her fingers, "that's so much more interesting than what's out here? Perhaps I should take a look-"

"No!"

Misty paused, about to laugh at Miranda's reaction. The woman's eyes looking huge behind her glasses as she gave her a look of bemused concern. "No?" teased Misty, untwining her fingers and sliding both hands up either side of Miranda's face, drawing her closer, "Would you prefer to make love in the hall then? Perhaps shock my sisters into leaving town?"

Miranda laughed nervously. "Um, I kinda have a surprise for you," she explained nervously, her heart beating so loudly, she was certain it was audible, "Just hold on, one little second..."

"Time's up," Misty chuckled, stepping back and crossing her arms half warily as Miranda turned and clutched the door handle with an unsteady hand.

The courier gave a small giggle at the comment, hating the necessity of halting their moment of spontaneous fun as she slowly turned the door handle and pushed it open just enough to see in.

From within the darkened room, Miranda could hear a strange, quiet, nearly rhythmic sound. Though the silvery beams of moonlight that shined through the window gave her partial visibility, all that Miranda could make out of the dark shape that sat upon the bed were sharply pointed ears and a long tail.

"Hey!" whispered Miranda into the room, pushing the door open slightly as Misty peered over her shoulder, her curiosity aroused by both her lover's odd behavior as well as the quiet snoring sound that emanated from her bedroom. "Yo! Wake up!" Miranda hissed, stomping her foot loudly and waving her hand expressively, "Come on! Go home!"

As Misty gripped Miranda's shoulders and tried to peer around her, a sound like some animal being startled awake filled the room. The annoyed snort was cut short by a frightened, high toned and vaguely female sounding shout of "Abra!" before terminating with a gentle -POP!-.

"Sp-sparkles?" stammered Misty, laughing as Miranda let out a long sigh of relief.

"I hope she didn't leave a mess," the woman commented, standing up straighter and turning to face Misty before taking her hands in her own. "Okay," she explained a little melodramatically, "I wanted to make this more of a surprise... But I think the mystery may have been unveiled early..."

"Nope!" promised Misty with a laugh, her eyes finally adjusting to the gloom of the hallway, "I'll close my eyes!"

"Alright then," said the courier with a smile, giving Misty a gentle kiss, causing her sea green eyes, so full of love and laughter to open once again, "Just give me a second."

Misty nodded as her lover stepped backwards and sideways into her room. "Don't start without me!" she teased through the door as it closed, soliciting a muffled laugh from Miranda, before pressing her ear against the door in curiosity.

From within, she heard the quiet sound of pokeballs opening, and the sounds of Wraith and Nezumi's happy greetings followed by Miranda's loud "Shh!" A moment later, Misty heard muffled voices as well as Wraith's quiet cackling as her small, narrow bedroom window slid open. There were a few more muffled voices, and then the door handle turned.

Misty leaped back, and both she and Miranda let out a short laugh as their eyes met. Just behind her, Misty could see her room illuminated by golden candlelight and hear the sound of the cool night breeze filtering through the open window.

"I, I think we're ready," said Miranda a little nervously, taking both of Misty's hands and leading her into the bedroom.

As Misty glanced around, she let out a short gasp of surprise as she realized several mysteriously floating candles supplied the candlelight that slowly orbited the interior of her room.

"Those are just Wraith's illusions," explained Miranda, looking down to be careful where they stepped as she lead Misty further into the room before motioning to the bed, "But this, however, is not."

Misty glanced in the direction that her lover had indicated and had to do a double take. In the place where the small, hard cot that passed for her bed since childhood had been, there was a now a large, comfortable looking one. One large enough for at least three or four people to lie shoulder to shoulder across it. In that moment, it didn't matter that most of her belongings had had to be moved to the other side of the room, carefully piled and stacked against one wall. It didn't matter that Wraith was hovering outside her window like some kind of darkly grinning spectre, waving heartily as Nezumi sat in his other hand laughing at her expression.

"Oh, Miri..." Misty breathed, throwing her arms around the woman and resting her head against her shoulder with happy tears in her eyes, "My dearest, sweet, beautiful Miranda. I love you..."

"That's all that I ask," assured Miranda, returning the embrace and slowly running her hands up and down Misty's back affectionately.

"But- but how-?" her beloved stammered, suddenly looking up at her with eyes full of concern, "And how much did, did this cost-?"

"Shh," soothed Miranda, placing a finger upon Misty's lips and trying to ignore the quietly muttered comments her rattata made about her 'looking like a girl', "The cost is meaningless. And as for how... Well, just promise me you won't be mad."

"How- how could I be!" laughed Misty, stepping back and shaking her head in disbelief at her wonderful new bed, complete with a brand new warm-looking comforter, silken sheets and down filled pillows so full and fluffy that they could stop a bullet, "I- I almost wish we were staying here longer so I could use it more!"

Miranda laughed, ignoring the lewd comments both her watching pokemon made. "Well, we have tonight," she promised, tilting her head to one side thoughtfully, "And the festival runs until the end of the week, so if Nezumi and Wraith don't turn up anything I wouldn't mind staying a few more days. I can call Bob first thing tomorrow and tell him I'm taking some time off."

"You're spoiling me again," sighed Misty, smiling in amusement as she realized that she actually caught most of what Nezumi had muttered, and blushing as she partially agreed with the rattata's sentiment.

"I like to think of that as my second job," her lover replied glancing out the window at her floating pokemon, smiling reassuringly before nodding for them to leave, "Heck, it even pays better."

Misty laughed turning in time to see Wraith and Nezumi wave goodbye before the haunter faded to invisibility and wove a simple illusion around the rattata to make him vanish as well.

"They're off to check out 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue', aren't they?"

Miranda nodded, noticing that the illusionary candles had already began to fade. "Yeah, I know," she said warily, glancing out the window at the still, quiet night, "It's a bit cliche, but I trust their abilities. Nezumi is stealthy, and good at finding things. And Wraith can make them both invisible, check any computer records they might have, as well as being able to show us exactly what they found with his illusions."

"You think they'll really find anything?" asked Misty, leaning against Miranda, enjoying the feel her dress against her skin.

Miranda shrugged. "I'll admit it's a long shot," she agreed, kissing Misty lightly, "but I'd rather be sure about this before I ask my Uncle to raid place looking for her. Besides, I still think that alakazam looked a bit familiar. It could have been the one we-"

"No more," said Misty, interrupting her with a finger pressed against Miranda's lips, a stern tone, and a serious look that softened as the candles faded further, "Once again we have the gym to ourselves, and this time we have a nice big, brand new bed to break-in. Not to mention the fact that I'm so wound up I could explode at any moment, and the fact that I can tell being hit on all night by three lovely ladies did more for you than your letting on."

Miranda blushed, looking embarrassed for a moment as she reached up and took her glasses off, setting them carefully on the nightstand. "Four, actually," she corrected in an amused tone, causing Misty to give her a curious look. "But one was so beautiful that it was painful to look upon her."

"Really?" inquired Misty, unable to keep a smile from forming, "And which one would that be?"

"Oh, you!" Miranda exclaimed, grabbing hold of her lover and throwing herself onto the bed as they both laughed.

"But you're right," she agreed after rolling onto her back and letting Misty lie atop her, "This is no time for talk of vile villainy, or all consuming vengeance, or even the bitter sting of sibling rivalry. For how could I sit down to dinner with one who caused my heart to ache so badly and not want to hold her? How could I ignore someone so wonderful? How could I think of anything else in the entire world other than how to make her take me home and let her take advantage of me?"

Misty, whose eyes had sparkled with intensity right up until the end, wound up laughing at the last comment. "Point taken," she replied, kissing Miranda softly and running her fingers through her lover's hair. "You know," she commented as Miranda lifted her head up to allow her hair to be fanned out across the turned back covers, "It's really not that bad."

"My hair?" inquired Miranda, looking up to where a bit of her bangs still stubbornly tried to obscure her eyes.

Misty nodded, brushing the dark locks off her lover's forehead. "It may be a bit unmanageable, and it seems to have a mind of its own, but your hair is still beautiful in its own way," Misty paused, leaning her elbow on the bed as she combed Miranda's dark locks with her fingers, "It tangles a bit, but its soft and silky..."

"You sound envious," Miranda commented, searching her lover's eyes. Noting to herself that Misty's hair didn't quite reach her shoulders even with it worn undone as it was now. Yet her lover's orangish locks, thinner and more manageable that her own, still gave Misty a certain tomboyish look that stirred something inside her.

Misty shrugged, sliding off of her to stand in the silvery moonlight that was now the cluttered room's only light source. "I suppose in my need to be the opposite of my siblings, I neglected my own femininity to a degree," she commented as Miranda sat up and held out her arms.

"Hardly," the courier assured as Misty glided forward into her embrace, "I'll bet no one in your family even thinks twice about you in that dress. But if I went home in this get up, the whole town would be like 'Oh my goodness! You mean Miranda's a girl?'"

Misty laughed, returning the embrace and once more taking handfuls of Miranda's hair, this time bunching it up, exposing her lover's neck and shoulders before tilting the woman's head to one side. "I know," she whispered quietly, trying not to let her musings break the mood and kissing her way up Miranda's neck.

"And, and your hair," Miranda breathed, feeling her pulse race as Misty gently nibbled her ear in just the right way, "don't- don't worry about it."

"Think I should let it grow out?" Misty inquired in a whisper, letting Miranda's midnight locks fall to one side as her hands reached back to slowly unzip her lover's dress.

"I- I really can't make that decision for you, dearest," Miranda sighed, letting her arms fall to her sides, smiling contentedly as Misty's nimble fingers slowly undressed her, "Especially since the way that you wear it makes that lovely neck of yours so vulnerable-"

"No, no," teased Misty with a laugh, playfully pushing back against Miranda's shoulders as the woman came forward to kiss her, "I still need to repay you for the other night. This time, you're not getting away without letting me please you."

Miranda smiled in the twilight, laughing as she obediently fell backwards onto the bed, her arms splayed to either side, her dress still half undone. "Please be gentle," she replied coyly, making Misty laugh as she fell forward, laughing as she kissed every inch of her lover's neck and chin before finding her lips.

"Somehow," mused Misty, her elbows on either side of Miranda, supporting herself, "I can't see you like that."

"Oh? What do you mean?" Miranda inquired, her tone becoming a little more serious.

Misty looked thoughtful for a moment, searching for the right words as Miranda put her hands behind her head, looking up at her lover in bemused adoration. "I, I suppose I just have trouble seeing you as... As inexperienced," she said tactfully after a time, "I just can't see you not knowing what to do. I just have difficulty seeing you in that roll, 'tis all."

"As I've said," assured Miranda, reaching up to touch Misty's face fondly, "I've had two more experienced 'instructors' in my time. But they both failed to teach me the one thing I've only just learned with you."

"And that would be?" said Misty softly, her voice sounding so vulnerable that Miranda tensed, feeling the need to wrap her arms around the girl and tell her that all was well.

"You... You taught me what it's like to love someone, and be loved in return," she managed, finding it hard to speak as her heart leapt in her chest, "No one else has ever given me that gift. But really, I don't want to think about them. Only you. You're the only one that matters to me."

"Three times lucky, then?" asked Misty rhetorically, her moment of insecurity vanishing as she laid her head down upon Miranda's chest, smiling as her lover's fingers brushed her hair back.

"Luck isn't a strong enough word."

Misty smiled, suppressing a small, happy laugh, only to have the moment stolen by a suddenly loud -thump!- from somewhere downstairs. "They're home," she said idly, closing her eyes and trying to block out the noise her sisters made as they argued about who forgot to set the alarm.

"I know," sighed Miranda wearily, staring at the ceiling as her fingers wove their way idly through her lover's hair and listening to the loud stomping sound as three people came up the stairs to the living area outside.

"Any chance they'll just go to bed?" inquired Miranda, wincing at the sound of a slamming door and realizing that Lily had had far too much to drink as she argued with Violet about something their waiter had said.

"I hope so," commented Misty sitting up and reluctantly leaving the safety of Miranda's arms, "This is one of the reasons I left-" They both gave a sudden shiver as something glass hit a floor somewhere and shattered, followed by the sound Lily's laughter and Daisy's pleas for her to just go to bed. "Sometimes it amazes me," continued Misty, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed as Miranda sat up as well, "How everyone thinks they're so perfect. That they never do anything wrong, and never act 'unladylike,' when really my sisters are totally different people when they're alone."

"Most people are different when they're not in public," Miranda replied, her arms sliding around Misty's waist, her chin upon her lover's shoulder as they both stared out the seemingly distant window.

"I know," she sighed, covering Miranda's arms with her own and giving in to the warm, contented feeling her lover's touch often brought, "I just wish people in this town didn't idolize them so much. As you said, Miri, they're not all that 'sensational'."

"Is that a hint of envy I hear creeping into your voice, love?" teased Miranda, her tone bringing a smile to Misty's lips.

"Perhaps a little," she confessed, leaning her head back against Miranda's shoulder, "I'm part of this family too, but most people don't even know that there is a fourth sister. Which is my own fault I suppose, but it would be nice to be recognized once in a while."

"You were certainly recognized outside the restaurant tonight," Miranda commented as their fingers intertwined and Misty moved her head forward again to listen to the sudden quiet from outside her small bedroom.

"Yes, that was kinda fun," she admitted with a smile, watching the light under the door suddenly go out, "But being recognized by some tabloid reporter hardly counts. Infact I think your Uncle put her up to it."

Miranda gave a false shocked look, and stammered as Misty laughed. "Come on, admit it," the girl teased, poking Miranda playfully in the ribs, "You try to make my happy so much sometimes it's almost like a conspiracy!"

Miranda shook her head in dismay, chuckling at the thought. "You certainly didn't complain about 'this' conspiracy," she commented, bouncing lightly on the new bed, which refused to make a sound in response.

"Well..." said Misty with a touch of worry in her tone, "I would prefer it if you didn't spend every last credit in your account on me. You needn't try to buy my love."

"It's no big deal," Miranda replied with a shrug, "Although I hope that such a thing isn't possible."

"Buying my love? Never. I'm not any of my sisters."

"And they're not you."

"Good thing too!" laughed Misty, not caring if she kept her siblings up, "'Cause then I'd have some real competition!"

Miranda grinned before giving Misty a puzzled look as the girl got to her feet and searched around in the darkness for a few moments before finding where their pack backs had been moved. "Here we go," she muttered mostly to herself as she quickly unpacked a few old clothes in her search.

"Candle?" her lover inquired as Misty stood up and lit a match, lighting the simple white candlestick she'd found before searching her now cluttered dresser for a place to put it.

"Yes," Misty said simply, sliding over a small picture of her parents before carefully setting the candle down and searching for something better to put it on.

Miranda gave a quiet chuckle, leaning back on her hands, and crossing her legs as she watched Misty move uncertainly about the room. She supposed it wasn't the best idea in the whole world to ask Zack to use Sparkles to teleport in a new bed for Misty. Especially considering the newly formed clutter the arrangement had caused, but it seemed likely that privacy had been an unaffordable luxury with her sisters about. And judging by the slight smile she saw upon Misty's lips as she moved about in the flickering candlelight, finally finding a candleholder in the top drawer, Miranda didn't think that it was worth bringing up.

Finally, once she'd made certain that the candle wasn't going to burn down the whole gym, Misty stepped into a relatively clear spot in the middle of the room, and held her hands out to Miranda. A somewhat shy smile crossing her lips as her eyes reflected her lover's curious gaze.

"I wanted to see you," she explained as Miranda got to her feet and stepped forward into Misty's embrace.

"Now who's plotting?" chuckled the courier as they held each other, their lips moving closer as they spoke.

"I just wanted to end this evening right," Misty explained, tilting her head slightly, brushing her lips over Miranda's teasingly before pulling back.

"How so?" the courier inquired coyly, standing a little straighter and trying to suppress a smile.

"By making love with you," Misty replied, feeling sudden warmth in her cheeks, but not caring if Miranda saw her blush.

"You know," warned Miranda with mock hesitation as she leaned back, glancing at the all too thin walls, "They WILL hear us."

"Let them," Misty's determined tone broaching no argument. "I want them to know just how much we love each other."

"I see," said Miranda thoughtfully as Misty took a step back, her fingers running down the sleeves of Miranda's dress until she found her lover's hands.

"Let them hear it!" continued Misty, an unmistakably mischievous grin forming as she spoke before throwing her head back and shouting out for all to hear, "Oh! Oh my dearest, Miri! Yes! Oh goodness yes!"

"Don't!" hissed Miranda, trying not to laugh as her hand sought to cover Misty's mouth.

"Oh! Oh yes! Right there!" shouted Misty in a passionate tone, suppressing her laughter as she stepped away, her eyes full of amusement as they both circumnavigated the floor bound clutter with Misty always staying out of Miranda's reach, "Yes, my love! That's it! Ooh, you're sooo much better than Gary!"

"Careful!" exclaimed Miranda lunging as Misty fell backwards into an old chair where a handful old stuffed animals that had once belonged to her siblings sat in a pile.

"No worries," replied Misty breathlessly as Miranda all but fell upon her, with arms that embraced her protectively.

Miranda sighed, shaking her head in mock dismay. "Okay, I concede," she said with amusement, "Just two small problems."

Misty gave a concerned look, running her fingers down the side of Miranda's face affectionately as she asked in a concerned whisper, "What is, my love?"

"Well," commented Miranda, thinking her thoughts through before speaking them, "What if 'they' come back-?"

"Don't be silly," interrupted Misty with a teasing chuckle, placing a finger over Miranda's lips to silence her, "Your boys know better than to annoy both of us at once. And besides, if they're bringing us bad news, I'd rather wait until morning to hear it. This evening's going fairly well, all things considered, and I don't want anything else spoiling it."

Miranda nodded slowly, glancing to one side and looking pensive as she formulated just the right words to use. "Okay," she replied as Misty gave her an amused look, "just one more thing. There's something I've been meaning to ask since earlier this evening, and it's kinda embarrassing but..."

"Just say it, my dearest Miri," Misty assured, taking a moment to dislodge a plushy starmie that had been threatening her with life-  
long lower back problems, before tossing it across the room.

As her eyes met her Misty's, Miranda blushed. "I- I have NO idea how to get out of this thing," she admitted helplessly as she tugged at the front of her dress, and causing Misty to burst out laughing once more.

"Oh you!" the girl teased, reaching around to slide Miranda's arms free of the garment, "And here I thought I was a tomboy."

Miranda smiled, quietly chuckling as she struggled to her feet before sliding carefully out of the garment, pushing it down her body in an unhurried fashion. "Oh, it's not that," she replied, her voice sounding thoughtfully seductive in the near darkness, "It's just that I haven't had much practice with these things. See? I need your help yet again."

Misty leaned back in her seat, idly thrumming her fingernails against the arms of her chair as she looked up at her now half naked lover. Miranda had managed to slide the dress down to her waist, but had stopped just above her hips, and now stood with her hands held out towards Misty. A look of mock helplessness crossing her face as her lover finally gave in, reaching out her hands in return.

Miranda's fingers slid across Misty's before taking a firm hold of her lover's wrists and bringing her slightly shorter lover to her feet. "Now, where about's are you stuck again?" Misty inquired, her arms going about Miranda's waist as she teasingly kissed her lover.

"Oh, right about here. Just let me show you," Miranda replied, her fingers moving up Misty's back before unfastening her dress at the back and slowly bringing the short, well concealed zipper down.

Misty watched intently as Miranda's hands moved to her shoulders, taking gentle hold of them before sliding the straps of the Misty's sleeveless dress off her shoulders and slowly pulling the dress down.  
"Careful, dear," Misty warned as it bunched up and Miranda a bit in the front had to wait for Misty to adjust it on her own.

"See," said Miranda with a wary sigh, her forearms placed lazily upon her lover's shoulders as Misty somehow slipped free of the shoulder straps, "You're much better at this than I am."

"Well then I still have things to teach you then, now don't I?" Misty commented in reply, her hands moving to rest upon Miranda's hips as the woman stepped carefully backwards, away from the cluttered chair.

"And perhaps I you," her lover agreed as they reached a clear spot on the floor, both of them swaying gently as if to quiet music that only they could hear.

"Perhaps," agreed Misty slyly, pausing in her movements as her hands moved to bring Miranda's dress down further.

"Taking advantage of me again?" Miranda teased.

"Hey, if you can't undress yourself, then I'll just have to do it for you," chided Misty in a silly tone, laughing as Miranda made an exaggerated show of finally stepping out of her dress and stretching her limbs.

"Ah, that's better!" she whispered loudly, leaning back and running her fingers through her hair several times to let it fall more freely, "Freedom at last-! Ow-!"

Miranda grimaced as her fingers caught several of her more perseverant tangles before simply giving up and turning her attention back to Misty who smiled approvingly as Miranda went about undressing her as well.

Misty's dress was a bit more complicated than Miranda's, but the courier found that it slid off easily as she simply held her hand's flat against Misty's hips and moved them downwards. The thin, silky feeling material was a poor substitute for the soft feel of Misty's skin beneath her fingers, but Miranda could still feel the firmness of her leg muscles through the fabric and caressed the gentle rises lovingly as she descended.

Her lover made a small quiet exclamation as she stood in her undergarments, the beautifully crafted gown, a silvery-gray mass pooled at her feet. "Something wrong?" whispered Miranda half teasingly as her hands slid up and down the backs of Misty's legs, never growing tired of the feel of her taught muscles.

Misty shook her head, whispering a soft negative reply as her fingers entwined through Miranda's hair, effectively trapping her as the feel of Misty's nails across her scalp sent chills through Miranda.

"Is there something you'd like then?" she inquired, her voice so soft that the sounds of crickets outside and the distant sound of the gym's enormous fish tank switching on its heater nearly drowned out the sound.

Misty's reply was a gentle, embarrassed laugh. "Just a place to sit down first of all," she said, gasping and curling her fingers as Miranda kissed her just above the knee before following the gesture up with a second kiss slightly higher, "Cause you know I can't stand when you do that..."

Miranda chuckled. "I know," she said simply, her hands running up the backs of Misty's legs, squeezing them in gentle appraisal as the tip of her tongue ran up her inner thigh before coming back down the other.

"Oh you..." Misty breathed, leaning forwards as her fingers pulled gently at Miranda's hair, urging her on.

Miranda paused only to chuckle teasingly, actually enjoying the gentle tug of Misty's fingers pulling unconsciously at her hair as her lover leaned forward for support and bent her quaking knees. Then, taking advantage of the new position, Miranda began to stand, teasingly running the tip of her tongue up across one of Misty's breasts.

Her lover gasped at the unexpected sensation, for a moment cursing the fabric that separated her from Miranda's touch. "Please," she whispered, feeling Miranda's hands slowly caressing ever higher, yet suddenly wishing for little more than the feel of the courier's hands upon her breasts, the wonderful sensation of her nipples being squeezed between Miranda's nimble fingers as their lips touched once again.

"Don't be so shy," came Miranda's breathy whisper, as she teasingly kissing the exposed skin just above Misty's bra, "Just tell me what you want..."

Misty blushed, hating the feeling of embarrassment that flooded her at the thought of simply blurting out her desires. "You- you know what I like, Miri," she stammered, her breathing unsteady as Miranda kissed her way higher.

"But I don't want to miss anything, my love." Misty let her head fall back as Miranda's kisses became gentle nibbles along her neck.

"It- it's embarrassing," she confessed, moving her head to once side and gasping as Miranda's teeth moved playfully across her ear.

"I understand," assured Miranda, her quietly whispered voice full of love, as Misty suddenly realized she was in danger of tearing the woman's hair out, "It's alright. You don't have to do anything you don't want to."

"I know," Misty sighed, letting go of her hair and leaning against Miranda as they both stood and just held each other, "And that goes for you too."

Miranda suppressed a bit of a laugh. "I can't imagine you asking me to do something I wouldn't want to do," she replied, holding Misty ever closer, "But then, I can't imagine there being something I wouldn't do for you."

"I..." stammered Misty, her voice suddenly sounding sad as she clung more tightly to her lover, "Sometimes I can't believe there's someone in the world who loves me this much."

Miranda hugged her back, feeling suddenly guilty as she felt Misty's tears upon her shoulder. "Misty, I-" she began, only to be interrupted by her lover's quiet, musical laughter.

"No, Miri," she said sincerely, shaking her head and moving to face Miranda, "I'm not sad. I'm happy. More happy then I've ever been at home in a long time."

Miranda searched Misty's sea green eyes for a moment, trying to understand the small number of tears that filled them as they moved to sit down upon the thinly carpeted floor, surrounded by nearly two decades of hand-me-down's that Zack and Sparkles had hastily rearranged to make room for the new bed.

"Misty," she said carefully, sifting through her words carefully before speaking them, "This may seem selfish, but I hope you can return that favor."

"I will," Misty promised, her eyes gleaming with a sudden intensity, "I know you go back home once a year on Halloween, and I want this year to be no different. But when we go there, I want to take away all the bad memories that that place holds for you. Just like you're doing for me here. I want that place to be a home for you again, dearest. Because I don't know if this place will ever be a home to me again, even with your intervention."

Miranda smiled sadly. "Anywhere is home when I'm with you, Misty," her sincere words were followed up my a slow, lingering kiss before the two resumed holding each other until the cool breeze from the open window began to get the better of them.

"I should close that," Misty commented, glancing at the billowing curtains in annoyance.

"That's probably a good idea," Miranda replied, not yet relinquishing her lover as she glanced over at the new bed that they hadn't so much as slept in yet. "You know," she added thoughtfully, "It seems odd that after all the trouble I went through to get you that bed, that we're sitting here on the floor."

Misty snickered, trying not to laugh but not succeeding. "You're right," she giggled, reluctantly pulling away from Miranda and finding her feet again, "I'll meet you there."

Miranda nodded, watching Misty's suddenly blurred silhouette as she headed for the open window. "You're beautiful, you know," Miranda commented from the floor.

Misty paused, standing before the window and feeling suddenly warm despite the cool breeze her body was in full contact with. "It's funny," she replied, resting her hands on the windowsill and looking down at the empty street below, "So few people in my life have ever said that to me. And for a while there, I was beginning to question their honesty. But since you've started saying that, I've begun believing it's true again. I suppose that's something else I owe you."

"You'd be beautiful even without me, dearest," Miranda commented, her chin resting on her hands as she sat cross-legged, seeing only a dark blur at this distance.

"No, silly," Misty laughed, inhaling the scent of the water off the lake, "What I mean to say is, is that since I've met you, you've been giving me back my self-esteem. I know I tease you, and say you're making me conceited, but do I appreciate it."

"Just remember that what I say is true," Miranda added in a serious tone as she got up and shuffled backwards towards the bed, "I don't give away my compliments easily. Just ask my mom some time. Before I met you, I seemed to have a bad habit of not giving the ones I loved the encouragement they deserved. So I suppose in that way we're even."

Misty yanked down hard on the window, and quickly covered her mouth to drown out her sudden exclamation as the window slammed noisily shut. "Ooops!" came her muffled voice as she turned to around and listened carefully for a moment, half expecting some kind of banging on the wall when the noise woke up at least one of her sisters. To Misty's surprise, however, no such sound came, and she was able to return her attention to Miranda.

"You know," she said thoughtfully, making her way carefully towards the bed, "It's odd, but this is the first time that I haven't felt like a stranger here in longer than I care to remember."

"That's because you're your own person now," Miranda replied, having at last found the bed, "You're here because 'you' want to be, not because you have to be. And you're not taking anymore crap from your siblings."

"Will I be able to return the favor, dearest?" came Misty's quiet tone as she glided through the darkness, a familiar shadow in an unfamiliar place.

"What do you mean?"

Misty was upon Miranda before she realized it, the courier's depth perception not being as accurate as it usually was, but the hands suddenly grasping her own were welcome ones.

"Every year you visit Lavender," her lover explained, crouching down and moving closer until Miranda could feel Misty's breath upon her lips, "And every year you hide behind your job, and you say 'oh, it's just because Wraith likes it here.' It hurts you to spend time there, and it hurts you to spend time with your mom. Doesn't it?"

Miranda nodded slowly, looking past Misty, lost in her own thoughts. "Well, it used to hurt me to be here," she continued, "But now it doesn't. Now I don't care what my sisters have done to our parent's dreams. Now I don't care what they think of me, because I have you. You've giving me the strength to move on. Now I want I want to do that for you, Miri."

Their eyes met, and Miranda felt herself smile. "I must admit, my dear. You've set a good example for me."

Misty nodded and sat next to Miranda, her arm going about her lover's shoulders protectively. "Well, I just hope that your mom can get used to seeing you happy for once when we get there," she said in an amused tone, "Assuming she approves of me."

"And if she doesn't, I'll be too happy to care," Miranda promised, giving her beloved a small kiss to seal it, "But you're right. Lavender holds a lot of bad memories, but a lot of good ones as well. Just like I'm sure this place holds a few fond moments for you."

"Well, maybe one or two," admitted Misty thoughtfully before giving Miranda a knowing look, "But one in particular comes to mind."

"And which one would that be?"

"The one we're having right now."

Miranda smiled, biting her lip as she saw the mischief brewing in her lover's eyes and quickly suppressed the urged to rush things. "Searching for perfect moments, are we?" she inquired coyly, suddenly very aware of Misty's nearly naked body pressed against her own and how easy it would be to ignore her own inhibitions. But Miranda sensed Misty's intentions, noting the slight disappointment in her lover's tone.

"Something like that," Misty replied with a dismissive wave her hand, "unless you'd rather just talk about our mutually depressing pasts until Nezumi and Wraith get back..."

"I'd rather look ahead-" Miranda began, suddenly gasping in surprise as she felt her bra come undone.

"I'd rather live for the moment."

Miranda sighed contentedly, her eyes sliding closed, her body feeling as though it were melting pleasantly as Misty leaned forward, kissing her until they had both fallen back onto the soft mattress.

"A perfect one?" Miranda teased, laughing a little and arching her back as Misty kissed her way hungrily down the courier's neck, occasionally giving her a playful nibble.

"I'm sure we'll find one of those before too long," Misty promise, as she rolled off Miranda so that they could realign themselves properly upon the bed that seemed enormous in her small, cramped room.

"So, how will we know when we find it?" whispered Miranda, propping her head up upon the new pillows, watching as Misty crawled up the length her body with eyes that gleamed with an almost predatory hunger before bringing up her knees and sitting upon them where Miranda's legs had obligingly parted.

"I'll show you," Misty purred as she teased Miranda with gentle kisses before pushing aside her lover's bra with her nose and laying a second gentle kiss on the exposed skin she found.

Miranda smiled, stretching out her limbs and letting the contentment spread through her. "I love you," she whispered quietly and inwardly made note of the fact that her lover's shyness was abating at a steady pace.

For a single selfish second, Miranda questioned herself whether or not that was a good thing. But as Miranda felt Misty's light touch upon her breasts as her lover's tongue gently caressed her nipples to full hardness, she knew that it was.

'Silly me,' Miranda chided herself, her finger's going through Misty's hair gently holding her head in place as Miranda's legs moved to hold her as well, 'I'd forgotten the thrill of an aggressive lover...'

Misty laughed lightly as Miranda gave in to her touch, squirming slowly beneath her, catching her breath at every kiss, and biting her lip to keep from calling out every time Misty's teeth teasingly nibbled at her skin. But even if Miranda had given no outward sign as to her condition, her body would have told the whole story. 

As Misty continued the slow path of her tongue across Miranda's breasts, her hand slid its way farther down, causing the courier's fingers in her hair to clench for a half a second before letting go.

"S-sorry!" Miranda stammered, her voice going up an octave and making Misty laugh as she tried to suckle her lover's breast.

"I'm tougher than that, dear," assured Misty, testing Miranda's level of excitement by casually brushing the backs of her fingers across Miranda's womanhood through the comfortable fitting panties that her lover still wore, and smiling at the warmth she found.

"Almost there," she teased as Miranda shivered at the sensation, and finding a strange feeling of satisfaction spreading through her as she realized that Miranda was blushing.

"Something wrong, Miri?" Misty teased, bringing her hand back before sliding across Miranda's cheek and holding it there as she leaned down to kiss her.

"It's nothing, my love," assured Miranda with an amused smile, her stormy gray eyes gleaming with some small, withheld secret.

"Am I embarrassing you?" Misty inquired, smiling and arching her back as the tips of Miranda's fingers traced parallel lines down either side of her spine.

"No, not at all," her lover lied so blatantly that they both had to laugh, "But it's okay. I need to be reminded how to blush now and then."

"That's true," agreed Misty, giving Miranda a long slow kiss before shuffling backwards, maintaining eye contact the whole way, "But I can think of better ways to give you that flushed appearance."

Miranda didn't respond. Instead, she looked on expectantly as Misty crawled backwards on her hands and knees a short distance before smiling mischievously and dropping her head down.

For a moment a moment a part of Miranda's mind thought it amusing that her lover's bottom still remained in the air, an almost blatantly teasing gesture, before having the thought completely derailed.

'Oh both curse and bless you, my love!' she laughed inwardly, feeling Misty's fingers move along her legs as gentle kisses caressed her inner thighs. 'She wants me to loose control,' Miranda mused, arching her back and gripping the blankets beneath her with both hands, 'Then let her try!'

Miranda's legs bent at the knees at Misty's coaxing, soon resting upon her shoulders as her tongue traced a path up one inner thigh and then the other; both times stopping just before reaching Miranda's womanhood.

All the while, her now free hands reached out blindly until they found Miranda's. Almost instantly their fingers entwined, and Misty found herself having to match the suddenly firm grip Miranda's fingers gave. 'Sensitive spot, I guess,' she chuckled to herself as her tongue made a sharp turn, moving upwards just before touching Miranda's undergarments.

"Oh-! You-!" came Miranda's halting tone as she seemed to be torn between quietly panting and trying not scream.

"Hey," replied Misty in an innocently teasing tone, "You like my legs so much, I thought I'd return the favor."

Miranda let out a bit of a laugh, throwing her head back and moaning quietly at the thought, only half noticing as Misty's fingers slipped away, her hands cupping the courier's breasts.

"No fair-" Miranda giggled, feeling her resolve failing as her hands covered Misty's showing her lover just how to fondle the firm softness of her own bosom.

Although she needed no instruction, Misty sighed contentedly, enjoying the feeling of Miranda's strong fingers atop her own, guiding her movements. For a moment, she merely waited, sliding into a more comfortable position and barely noticing as her legs dangled off the end of the bed.

Without need for prompting, Miranda pushed at Misty's fingers, coaxing her lover to squeeze her gently before pushing Misty's fingers together to squeeze her nipples.

"Right there?" her lover inquired, smiling coyly as Miranda opened her eyes and smiled.

"You're much to gentle," Miranda assured her, pushing Misty's fingers closer together, only to find her lover noncompliant, a mischievous smile crossing the water-trainer's face.

"Is there something you want?" teased Misty, her heart pounding so loudly in her chest that she could hear her pulse racing in her ears.

Miranda gave her an amused, yet flustered look before letting out a slow chuckle and dropping her head back against the pillow. "Well?" came Misty's insistent inquiry, causing Miranda to almost taste the irony in the air, "Is there something you'd like, my love?"

"Yes!" the woman exclaimed in a harsh whisper, sitting up so quickly, with such an intense look of need upon her face that Misty could only laugh, "Squeeze them harder-" as she spoke, Miranda pushed her lover's fingers closer together, "And while you're at it, I don't care if you have to tear my underwear off, just please stop teasing me!"

Misty laughed, more than willingly dropping her head back down as her fingers tightened about Miranda's captured nipples, causing her lover to let out sudden sound that seemed to cross a grunt with a gasp, the courier's body shuddering for a moment before relaxing.

It wasn't long before Misty realized why. Even in the dim, silvery moonlight that her eyes had barely become accustomed to, Misty's could easily make out the not so subtle changes in Miranda's expression. Experimentally, she drew her tongue across Miranda's labia, still protected by the thin, comfortable cotton panties she wore.

'Thought so,' she mused, both feeling and tasting the dampness upon her tongue before teasingly poking at Miranda through the garment, causing the courier to squirm a bit, her fingers suddenly coiling through Misty's hair.

She felt a familiar shiver run through her in response to Miranda's gesture, a wondrous feeling of suddenly being very much in control. Of knowing that every gasp, every moan that issued from her lover's lips was her doing. That the hardening of Miranda's nipples, the flushed expression upon her face and the growing moisture inside her was both because of, and for Misty. It was an invitation of sorts, and a declaration of Miranda's desire to do the same for her.

'This is just for me,' Misty mused hungrily, yanking down Miranda's undergarment so quickly that her lover expected an immediate follow up, but Misty chuckled to herself, smiling at Miranda's soft, almost pained exclamation as her tongue touched her softly in comparison to the abrupt disrobing.

"You, you, you..." Miranda murmured happily as she let go of Misty to reach out and grip the edges of the mattress.

"Hmm?" her lover inquired coyly, not pausing from the slow trail she was tracing with her tongue, exploring every curve, every angle, every dip she encountered.

Miranda let out a small laugh, and Misty felt the tension in her body relax somewhat. "That's- that's not fair," the courier panted, leaning up on her elbows and smiling down at her lover who seemed more than content to take her time.

"Something wrong dear?" Misty inquired, pausing only to brush her sweaty bangs out of her eyes before repeatedly running her tongue along the length of Miranda's womanhood, each time stopping just before hitting her clit.

The courier shook her head in dismay, falling back laughing as her body let out an inadvertent shiver that had nothing to do with being cold. A moment later, Miranda's thoughts all became fleeting as all her concentration became taken up by the sensations that suddenly flooded her, and the peculiar ache she felt whenever Misty's tongue came closer to her clit, only to withdraw.

'Th- there-!' she wanted to scream, feeling the ache almost becoming a burning feeling as Misty's tongue arched around it, as she experimented with new ways to just barely avoid the area. But every time Miranda opened her mouth to try to speak, all she heard was her own gasps turning into something incomprehensible, something spoken so loudly, that she was certain her lover's siblings would awaken at the sound of.

'Not again!' Miranda laughed to herself, for a moment recalling Violet walking in on her. 'How long had she been outside that thin door?' the woman mused for a moment, getting a odd thrill from the thought, even though the sensation was now lost, mixed in with everything else.

Miranda soon became dimly aware of a change. The feeling, the constant lapping and teasing of her womanhood had changed somehow. With effort, she calmed herself down enough to open her eyes. 

Both of Misty's hands were now upon her breasts, as her lover's tongue had finally slid so far between her labia so that Misty's lips were now pressed against them, suckling gently.

Miranda bent her legs at the knees, shuffling downwards in a futile attempt to have more of Misty's tongue inside her. Already, her lover was making several gentle motions that would tease Miranda to the brink had she not already been there, and for a moment Miranda wished for something more. Something to fill her, to take care of her aching need so that she could hold Misty tight, kissing her, desperately in the vain hope of expressing the depth of her love, nearly trying to become one with her lover as the orgasm crashed through her.

For a moment, the need sparked a memory of a previous lover. Had Miranda been more in control of her thoughts, she would have laughed and chastised herself for not recalling the woman's name, but in her present state, it didn't matter. All she could recall was the woman's soft dark blue hair falling about her, cutting them both off from reality. Her lips pressing against Miranda's, laughing at the expression upon her face as somewhere, something, someone else was-

"Miranda!" came Misty's voice, her whispered tone sounding out of breath, but full of mischief. The sound of it was more than enough to break Miranda's concentration, to end her reverie, although Miranda was quite certain that Misty could have whispered "lamppost" and it would have gotten her attention.

"Yes?" she replied, feeling a little guilty, but as she watched, Miranda's mind lost the thought, her eyes going wide in anticipation.

Misty gave her lover a wide smile before glancing down at Miranda's womanhood almost appraisingly. She then glanced up to catch the courier's expression. Miranda's eyes were wide, unblinking orbs of beautiful gray and Misty made a special note not to blink as she leaned down, moving in closer.

Even though her nearsightedness often made things a bit blurry around the edges, even at this distance, Miranda's vision felt strangely clear. As though her mind were filling in all the blanks. Even her hearing became more acute in that second, that seemed to last almost forever. She could faintly hear the sound of the giant fish tank's air filter bubbling, the quiet sounds of night creatures going about their business outside the window and even the quiet noise of one of Misty's sisters stirring in her sleep.

But one sound soon blotted out all others. As Miranda then realized, sight and sound weren't the only senses seemingly heightened by the experience, her sense of touch was as well.

With a quiet giggle, Misty drew the full length of her soft tongue across Miranda's clit, barely touching it. But even with so slight a contact, Miranda could feel every bump across its surface, every slight flex, and every curve of Misty's tongue as it dragged its way across her deeply needful clit.

For the longest of moments, Miranda felt herself want to both laugh and cry, but the joyous feeling was overcome by the sudden rushing sound in her ears as the full force of the pent-up orgasm hit her. The overwhelming feeling of euphoria then blinded Miranda to the world around her, deafening her to the sound of her own voice for a split second that seemed to last forever.

When at last some semblance of sanity began to seep in around the edges, Miranda found herself sitting up, her legs bent and held as far apart as possible. Her fingers were full of Misty's hair, and her lungs burned for air, making Miranda wonder how long she'd screaming out her ecstasy.

But Misty hadn't stopped. Her tongue still lapped hungrily at Miranda's womanhood, dragging her mind back into the sweet oblivion of ecstasy. 'Fine then!' Miranda laughed, barely noticing the odd sounds she made as her body convulsed around her, selfishly not caring that her knees held Misty tightly in place, or that her suddenly loud exclamations were probably giving her lover's siblings quite an earful.

'Oh, let them listen!' Miranda shouted in her mind, only vaguely aware of the almost laughing grunts she seemed to be making in her attempt to speak, only dimly conscious of Misty's lips surrounding her clit as it was suckled and licked at the same time, 'Serves them right! Lets Violet hear what she can never have-!'

Misty pulled back for a moment to catch her breath, caught up in the swirl of energy that seemed to have gripped Miranda in response to her relentless attention.

'Wow,' Misty thought inwardly with an appreciative smile, experimentally sliding a finger between Miranda's labia and feeling the sudden clenching of her internal muscles, 'I never knew Miri could get this way-'

But her musing was cut short as Miranda yanked herself away. Without wasted movement, the courier somehow got her legs under herself and leaned down to kiss Misty.

For a confused moment, Misty wasn't certain what her lover was trying to do, but didn't struggle as Miranda's hands slid under her arms and tried to pull her up. "Oh, I see," she replied, struggling against the sudden numbness in her legs as Miranda smothered her with impatient kisses that made her laugh and fall backwards.

The relentless onslaught of affection failed to cease, however, as Misty fell back laughing. "You okay?" she teased, suddenly finding her head balanced precariously over the bottom end of the bed with Miranda suddenly looking a bit confused, stuck in mid-kiss.

Her lover's response was a wide smile, a hungry, almost predatory gleam in her eye as she took careful hold of Misty's calves and slid her back from the brink across the bed to a more comfortable position.

"If, if you want me to stop," Miranda panted as she leaned over Misty, her long dark hair falling about her in a way that gave the courier an almost feral appearance, "P-please... Say it now."

"No," Misty replied with a loving smile, a feeling of serene trust filling her as she looked on in amused anticipation, "I want to see what you're capable of."

Miranda withdrew her hands for a moment, her fingers clenching as she closed her eyes and smiled. "I see," she sighed all to calmly, before slowly opening her eyes and lunging forward.

Once again, Misty found herself laughing, finding it a strange reaction, but Misty supposed it was just all the laughter she'd lost as a child coming back to her. With one quick motion, Miranda rolled her over onto her stomach, and slid her fingers along her lover's hips, hoisting Misty onto her knees before pulling down her undergarments.

"Oh-!" Misty exclaimed, not quite expecting the sudden feeling of Miranda's mouth upon her womanhood, suckling hungrily against her.

For her part, Misty was surprised the warm sensation she'd been ignoring in herself but now could not. 'I must have been too distracted to notice...' she mused, arching her back as Miranda's hands slid up her thighs and gave her bottom an appraising squeeze, 'Oh well!'

After a moment, though, Miranda's lips pulled away. "G-goodness," she panted, her hot breath sending chills down Misty's spin as it touched her sensitive skin, "This is too much..."

"In a good way, I hope?" Misty inquired, lowering her head and glancing upside down at Miranda, her voice sounding a touch more pleading than she'd intended.

"Definitely," assured Miranda with hungry sound as she moved her tongue more skillfully now that she was more in control of herself.

"Hm, good," her lover sighed, relaxing and closing her eyes as the gentle feeling spread through her, only half missing the frantic suckling Miranda had exhibited earlier. 'So long as it feels good, and so long as its just you, Miri,' she thought wistfully, 'I don't care what you do to me right now...'

For a time, Misty simply stood still, finding the unaccustomedly vulnerable position curiously enjoyable as Miranda's slow kisses moved down her legs and her fingers caressed her. But as she gripped the edge of the bed, shuddering as pleasant sensation passed fleetingly through her, a thought struggled to the surface.

'What if they walk in?' it said in Misty's voice, but it only made her smile. 'So be it!' Misty told herself, chuckling at the thought of being walked in on in such a precarious position. On her knees, with Miranda behind her, and with her lover's wetness still upon her lips. 'Oh ,let them see! Let them know! Let the whole freaking world know!' Misty shouted defiantly at the thought, finding herself somehow intrigued by the possibility, 'Let everyone in the whole entire universe know that I love Miranda Lydia Lilcamp!'

As she thought the words, Misty's body gave in again. The orgasm wasn't mind blowing, but it was enough to make her cry out, and as Misty came down, the thoughts she'd had stayed in her mind, coalescing into an image that set her upon the path to another...

In her mind, Misty imagined herself and Miranda. Still upon her new bed, still with Miranda behind her, still with wonderful feeling of not knowing what her lover might do next. Only now, the bed was not in Misty's now even more cramped and crowded little bedroom. Instead, the large, comfortable, wonderful surprise gift that that Miranda had bestowed upon her was set upon the raised wooden platform that passed for a stage at the fairgrounds. The same stage that Miranda had once stood upon, reciting a poem to the crowd, professing her undying love and affection for the woman she'd love all her life to the exclusion of all others.

Above them, the warm sun shined down its approval from the brilliantly blue sky, as before them, a by far innumerable crowd of onlookers stared up at them with rapt fascination. Some stood quietly smiling, while others held up lit lighters, and still others broke down in tears at the sight of the beautiful, perfect love, but all the spectators looked on with the deepest, most sincere approval possible.

Misty closed her eyes for a moment, her body shivering as her embarrassment caused a wide smile to cross her lips. "Yes," she told them, "Watch. Listen. Learn. See how far this so-called worthless extra sister has come!"

Misty's thoughts were interrupted for a moment, though, as Miranda shuffled onto her back and pulled her body closer. "It's easier this way," the courier muttered rather quickly with a slight nervous laugh.

"It's okay," Misty assured her, clinging to her fantasy and the feelings both it and her lover invoked.

The crowd of onlookers took a half step back as Misty rose to stand upon her knees, straddling her lover who continued about her task with the greatest of eagerness. For a time Misty tried to relax, letting the feelings come in slow waves that spread up through her body before subsiding and coming again as all around her she felt the imagined cool breeze off the lake, the intense warmth of the sun upon her back, and the gazes of a legion of fans, all deeply moved by what they were witnessing.

Soon, however, Misty noticed a peculiar tension. A feeling of odd confinement that seemed unwelcome in her current situation. She opened her eyes and gave the imagined crowd a mysterious grin as she glanced down and perceived the problem. Her bra was still on.

"Silly me," she muttered as her mind wove yet another aspect to her fantasy.

With a sultry glance at the spectators, Misty moved her hand towards the front clasp that held the garment together. 'They all want to see,' she mused, sending a strange chill down her spine and almost feeling the effect upon her own ego, 'these people aren't going to laugh. They aren't going to ridicule. They aren't going to shrug and walk away so they can move on to some fake looking half-baked bimbo! No. They're going to stay. They'll see something they can never have, yet all desperately long for something that will haunt their memories for their entire lives!'

With almost painful slowness, both Misty's hands moved to undo the small clasp. The gentle 'click' was almost audible as the entire crowd held its collective breath, and Misty glanced up at them, smiling coyly at their stares of rapt fascination.

"Patience is half a virtue," she told them, slowly sliding the garment apart, gradually revealing herself to them as their curious expressions became enraptured by the mere thought of seeing Misty completely naked.

As her nipples came into view, though, most of the onlookers let out gasps of surprised delight as many others fell to their knees. Still others stood quite still, except for the curious quaking of their bodies until their faces contorted in expressions of intense joy and they collapsed upon the ground, unconscious but still convulsing.

Finally, though, as Misty slid the bra off her shoulders and raised it above her head, those who could, rushed forward to the edge of the stage, their eyes filled with both wonder and elated tears as they held their hands out to her. So, with a wide grin, and a bit of a laugh, Misty swung the garment once before tossing it into the crowd. Once again, the spectators held their collective breath as all eyes moved across the clear blue sky, tracking the flailing white object until it descended among them.

The man who caught it let out an amazed cry of amazed ecstasy as the soft material touched his fingers immediately falling to his knees in reverence, crying as he laughed almost hysterically at his good fortune. Those around him, though, were so awestruck, that they fell in a wide circle around him, each of their bodies shivering and convulsing as deeply satisfied moans passed their lips.

From the stage, though, the scene began to loose cohesiveness. As Misty arched her back and suddenly found Miranda's hands thankfully clinging to her own, it was all that she could do to not cry out.

It felt as though Misty were somehow drowning in her own passion as her need for release became the single driving force in her existence at that moment. Somewhere, distantly, Misty could hear Miranda's voice, panting, possibly saying something, but it hardly mattered. All that Misty could sense of the outside world were Miranda's fingers through her own, clinging in near desperation as her lover's tongue lapped urgently at her womanhood.

"I- I must-!" Misty tried to say, but her voice seemed somehow harsh to her own ears as her mind forgot how to form the words, and then forgot why they mattered.

As the overwhelming feeling struck her, Misty felt herself loose control of her limbs. Somewhere in her mind, she was vaguely aware of them moving of their own volition as somewhere else her own voice repeated a word over and over again.

It seemed like forever before she recognized it. As the peculiar floating, almost disembodied feeling slowly subsided, Misty found herself muttering, "Miri, Miri, Miri..."

She was then equally surprised to find herself in her lover's arms, the both of them still shaking, covered in sweat, but both feeling extremely happy. "I-!" stammered Misty, quickly cutting herself off before yelling in Miranda's ear. "Um, how...?" she whimpered, happily exhausted.

"You said something about not being able to hold me close enough," came Miranda's quiet, contented sounding reply as her fingers ran idly down Misty's back, "It's a feeling I know all too well."

Misty smiled, and let out an equally contented sigh as she snuggled closer. "I'm sorry that I don't really remember that," she replied, blushing as she pondered what other words may have escaped her lips.

"That's okay, dear," assured Miranda, her mind clinging to the moment as much as possible, concentrating more upon the fulfilling feeling she got every time she hugged her lover a little closer than anything else.  
"So I suppose you're going to be up all night now," pondered Misty, sliding her body lower so she could see Miranda's face.

"It's okay," the courier replied with a shrug, her hand reaching out to brush Misty's sweaty hair back, "I want to hold you for as long as I can anyway."

"The rest of your life's a long time, dear."

Miranda leaned forward, answering Misty's suddenly wry smile with a kiss. "Now you're just being silly," she chuckled, taking a moment to both flip the pillow over.

"Only partially," Misty assured her with a yawn, watching as Miranda lifted the dark tangled mess her hair had become before laying her head back down, letting it fan out across the pillow, "But seriously, it's not fair of me to simply fall asleep on you."

Miranda gave a mirthful chuckle as her arms went about her lover once again. "Don't worry," she told Misty with a shrug, "It's only my mind that wanders. My body, however, is quite content to remain perfectly still. Besides, this is when my inspiration is at its peak. 'Clear your mind, and let inspiration fill it,' or something like that anyway..."

"All right then," Misty replied, stretching out her muscles one last time before putting her head down upon Miranda's chest and closing her eyes contentedly, "Just wake me up if Nezumi and Wraith have anything interesting to say."

"Oh yeah, them..." pondered Miranda, glancing over at the fuzzy image of the window at the other side of the room. Just beyond it, she could make out the brilliantly glowing shape of the moon in its gibbous phase. "I hope they're all right out there..."

Chapter XVIII

Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue was dark and eerily silent as the two invisible figures glided across the now empty parking lot and sailed up onto the roof. Once they were both well within the shadows cast by several small chimneys and the rooftop portion of the ventilation system, Wraith dropped the illusion of invisibility on his companion as he faded into the visible spectrums of light himself.

"Well that was fun," commented Nezumi sarcastically, hopping down off the haunter's spectral, disembodied hand to the broken gravel of the roof, his body weaving back and forth as he regained equilibrium, "I hope I get frequent flier miles for it, though. I think I prefer my feet on the ground. And so long as we're on the subject, I'd especially prefer to actually be able to see my feet!"

Wraith chuckled, gliding along a few feet off the roof, surveying the scene. "At least you 'have' feet," he chided in an amused tone before floating up to the ventilation grate and poking at it with his three fingered hand, "Say, how 'bout this way?"

Nezumi closed his eyes, giving his head a good shake to make certain his brain was turned around the right way and glanced over at the dark floating shape of his friend. "Oh, VERY funny, Fang Face!" he replied in a warily annoyed tone, recalling the first time they met, "But I think we've spent enough time in ventilation tubes for one life time."

"Aww, come on," laughed Wraith, trying to look innocent, but not really succeeding, "I'm on YOUR side now, remember?"

Nezumi smiled, somehow unable to muster anger towards his old friend. "You're just lucky I'm not claustrophobic," he muttered, scampering over to the metal grating and looking at the near total darkness between the slats.

"Umi forgives me," the ghost added in his own defense as the rattata began squeezing himself between the slats in what seemed like an impossible feat of squirming.

"Yeah, well, ah-!" responded Nezumi, his voice echoing as he shifted his weight in an attempt to get his stomach through the thin opening, "Draco-babe's still kinda impressionable, and she's just a wee bit too forgiving sometimes. Ow-! Oh man, I really need to loose some weight!"

Wraith suppressed a laugh as the rattata fell forward and had to grab one of the metal slats with the end of his curled tail to avoid falling into the darkness below. "Need some help?" he inquired with a wide grin as he phased easily though the metal grating and caused his eyes to glow an eerie amber colour.

"Naw," commented Nezumi as though he were fine with the concept of hanging upside down by his tail over a dark abyss, "I think I'll just wait 'till I sprout wings and can fly my way down!"

The ghost tilted his body from side to side in a manner of shaking his head before reaching out with on hand and snatching Nezumi up by the tail. He then glanced down, causing the wave of strange, spectral light to illuminate the surprisingly long drop to the bottom. Wraith then let out a long, impressed sounding whistle and held Nezumi closer to his face.

"Looks like a long drop," he commented mischievously, "Good thing you had me here to save you!"

"Don't even think about it," the rattata chuckled as they descended, passing by several offshoots that would soon be keeping the second floor living area warm all Winter.

"Don't worry," the ghost assured him, his tone sounding less maniacal, "I've never actually wanted really hurt anyone."

"No, not you. Never!" replied Nezumi offhandedly, waving a paw dismissively for effect, "You just want to scare the living daylights out of folks from time to time that's all."

"Well, you have to admit that fear a fairly strong emotion," explained Wraith as they reached the bottom and he let Nezumi down with the utmost of care.

"So's amusement," added the rattata, sniffing around to figure out their next move.

"Yeah," the haunter agreed thoughtfully, "And I do like making people laugh, but every once in a while, you just have to give someone a good scare! It's so... So yummy!"

"Yummy?" inquired Nezumi, stopping in his tracks and blinking loudly.

"Yes," mused Wraith, closing his eyes for a moment and causing the lights to go out again, "the living have such tasty emotions! And their nightmares aren't half bad either!"

Nezumi shook his head and sighed before finally catching the old scent of frying meat that once wafted down the shaft from somewhere farther ahead. "Ah! Now THAT'S yummy!" he explained, glancing over his shoulder at the bewildered looking haunter.

"Sorry, guy," replied Wraith with a shrug, "I don't remember food. Or much of anything from my breathing days."

"Gee," commented the rattata, a look of distant horror in his eyes, "I can't imagine not being able to taste stuff. Food's great!"

"Eh," replied Wraith with what passed for a shrug, "C'est La Morte."

Nezumi furrowed his brow, thinking hard for a moment before suddenly grinning broadly. "Alright then, my fine, ectoplasmic friend!" he announced, raising up on his hind-legs and folding his forelegs across his chest, "I think it's about time that you got an edge-you-vacation in fine queeze-een!"

Wraith stifled a laugh, knowing better than to let his voice echo too much. "And just how do you propose to do that?" he inquired with smirk, "Just 'cause I have a tongue, doesn't mean I can taste."

"Ah!" replied Nezumi with a gleam in his eye, "But I can!"

Wraith gave the rattata a suspicious look, floating closer as one eye grew and the other shrank to compensate. "You have a plan?"

Nezumi nodded. "Yup," he said in an amused whisper, glancing around as if expecting someone to come along and find them plotting, "You know that trick you can do? The one where you link minds with the Boss Lady? And sometimes she can see what you see, and you can see what she's seein'?"

Wraith rubbed his chin, looking thoughtfully as Nezumi spoke. "I think I see what you're getting at," he replied, turning his gaze back to the rattata and nodding, "Alright then. But you might want to close your eyes first. Human minds are more complex than rattata's."

"Eh, I can take it," assured Nezumi with a shrug before looking Wraith straight in the eye, grinning broadly and saying, "Alright, Fang Face. Hit me!"

Wraith cackled as he reached out his disembodied hand and pushed a single finger through his friend's forehead without encountering resistance. His consciousness then quickly slipped past Nezumi's less than adequate mental shielding as though it wasn't even there and almost immediately found the center of the pokemon's consciousness. With a satisfied smile, the haunter accessed a continuous stream of hazy memories he'd only glanced at in passing when they'd first met.

In less than a heartbeat's time, the haunter had quickly scanned through all of Nezumi's limited long-term memory and was amused by the images of himself in his friend's mind. It even gave him a strange warm feeling to know that they both thought of each other as brothers now, and that Umi was indeed the little sister they both sought to protect. Even though she'd be able to easily defeat both of them at once in only a few years time.

When he touched the rattata's thoughts about Miranda, though, he felt a sudden, strange sadness. Though Wraith himself had no actual 'parents', having long since transcended the mortal plane and having forgotten even what he was in life, the fact that Nezumi secretly thought of Miranda as 'Mom' caused the ghost to take pause. The rattata had never spoken of his real mother, and her fate had been lost in the garbled jumble of memories Nezumi had accumulated growing up with humans.

But amongst the faded memories, Wraith found an image that caused a pang of guilt. He'd felt the emotion before in himself, but only rarely, and in small measure, but the image of Nezumi's rattata siblings being devoured by a hungry persian made the haunter feel more genuinely guilty than he'd thought possible. Wraith then once more recalled the first time he'd met Nezumi and Umi. When he'd quickly scanned their minds to discover their worst fears. Umi's had involved the cold, but that wasn't surprising. Dragons HATED being cold more than anything else in the world. But Nezumi's fear involved felines. Persians in particular. At first Wraith had thought it was simply a common rattata trait, the logic standing to all reason. But now as he quickly reviewed the images of a younger Miranda risking her life against a feline that outweighed her, and could have easily made the human its next meal, the haunter knew what true guilt was.

For his part, Nezumi felt nothing more than a slight tingling as the dark shape passed between his eyes and literally touched his mind. Less than a second later, he felt a slight wave of disorientation as a flood of memories zipped past, too quickly to make sense of, followed by a wave of sudden nausea.

"Oh...!" he exclaimed uneasily, staggering backwards on his hind legs as he developed a strange sort of double vision. For a moment, Nezumi could see Wraith looking down at him almost sadly, but at the same time, he could though the haunter's eyes a little rattata staggering almost drunkenly from side to side before falling over on his back.

"Oh, sorry," muttered Wraith, turning down the sense-link, "As I said. Human's are more complicated than pokemon."

"No worries!" assured Nezumi, clutching his head against the sudden ache behind his eyes, "Let's just get moving. We only have a few hours ta kill, and I wanna see what they have in their kitchen before we do any serious snooping."

"Alright then," Wraith replied, pretending to crack his knuckles before floating past Nezumi, his the glow from his luminescent eyes reflecting off a nearby ventilation grating, "Just let me check to make sure the way is clear."

Nezumi nodded slowly, giving himself a second headache in the process before following the ghost at a slow, careful pace until he regained equilibrium and he got used to the peculiar echoing effect in his ears.

"Hey!" whispered Wraith, his voice a dark hiss as the light from his eyes went out, "Check this out! Um, close your eyes first."

The rattata complied, shutting his eyes as he approached the grating. To Nezumi's surprise, his mind was filled with a sudden storm of confusing images. Many of the shapes, were familiar, and even the sensation of being suspended in midair was becoming commonplace, but what Nezumi hadn't been ready for, was colour.

All his life, the rattata had seen the world with eyes that were designed for nocturnal foraging. The world of colour was foreign to him, as Nature had decreed that night creatures had no need for such things. And now, Nezumi's mind swam with images that were both familiar and yet completely alien to him.

Only the dull white of the walls in the small office held any solace from the seemingly blinding dull green of the carpet, the somehow nauseating brown of the desk, the somehow loud red colour of the LED of the digital clock that sat upon it.

"A computer!" cackled Wraith in excitement, suddenly severing the connection and phasing through the grating, leaving a light sheen of ectoplasm upon the metal to mark his passing.

"Gah!" spat Nezumi, holding his head as he opened one eye and stared gratefully out at the wide assortment of grays, blacks and whites that his mind was used to, "That's enough of that!"

After a moment to make sure he could keep his last meal down, Nezumi scampered up to the grating and peered curiously through the slanted metal bars. "Eww!" he complained, getting a face full of ectoplasm for his trouble, but still thankful to see that the office was in shades he understood once more.

"Pssst! Hey, Fang Face! You gonna open the door, or what?" he called, his voice a squeaking whisper, but the haunter had already vanished into the large white box with the dark glass screen and Nezumi knew he'd be a while.

"Oh, for the love of gouda!" the rattata muttered, taking several steps back from the sealed exit, "I guess I'll just have to do it myself."

Nezumi closed his eyes and took several deep breaths, partially to prepare himself and partially in hopes of catching a scent or two from the kitchen. "One, ten... Eighty-four-!" he exclaimed before racing forward, kicking in a surge of adrenaline from a special gland as he did so, allowing Nezumi to travel far faster than was normal for the split second it took him to plough into the grating.

There was a loud -pop!- as the loose screws came loose from the plaster wall and the rattata came crashing through the thin metal barrier, but the shriek Nezumi let out as he suddenly fell out of the air at near terminal velocity was far more ear-splitting.

"Ahh!" he cried, tumbling end over end for what seemed like forever before landing with a bounce upon the dark leather sofa that rested against the opposite wall.

"Shh!" hissed Wraith, his disembodied voice echoing eerily from the computer speakers, "You could wake the dead with that yell!"

"Look who's talking," the rattata muttered, brushing the ectoplasm and dust out of his fur.

"You know what I mean," responded Wraith, suddenly making a peculiar, happy sound before cackling quietly to himself.

"Oooh!" he whispered over the speakers, "This is pretty good!"

"What is?" Nezumi inquired, bounding off the couch and running across the dark carpet to where he could climb up the leg of the desk.

"I think it's a love letter," chuckled Wraith, followed by a faint explosive sound as he emptied the computer's recycle bin.

"You can read it?" asked Nezumi, blinking loudly as he struggled onto the desk and sat before the keyboard.

"Well, not 'exactly'," admitted the haunter as the monitor flickered to life, "But the way the one's, zero's and two's line up occasionally make pictures I can sorta understand."

"Wha-?" Nezumi replied, his head flopping to one side, adding to his sudden slack jawed expression.

"Never mind," assured Wraith, suddenly appearing on the screen as a two-dimensional haunter that took up most of the screen, "It's how these things talk. It's not something you need to worry yourself about."

"Good," commented Nezumi, giving his head a shake as he glanced curiously up at the image of his friend, sniffing the air between them, "Say, are you sure you weren't one of them 'pory-what's it's' before you, you know... Kicked the bucket?"

"I don't think so," the ghost replied thoughtfully, his disembodied hand rubbing his chin as he spoke, "Otherwise we wouldn't have met."

"How's that?"

Wraith shrugged. "It's all technical," he muttered dismissively, suddenly turning his attention to something inside the system Nezumi couldn't see, "but to put it simply, those bleeders at Sylph grabbed me 'cause they were too lazy to make a computer that thought for itself. That was before they made those porygon things."

"I see," replied Nezumi slowly, trying to recall the fuzzy memories as Wraith mucked about in the computer for several minutes.

"Okay, here we go," said Wraith finally before reaching his hand towards the rattata, "This'll take a while, but I'm sure it'll have something on it the Boss Lady'll want.

Nezumi watched in curious fascination as the haunter's hand touched the inside of the glass screen before pushing forward and slowly entering the real world once again, the dark hand passing through the barrier, and seeming to go from two dimensional, to three.

"Show off," chuckled the rattata, watching as the hand opened one of the desk's drawers and began rummaging through it.

"Hey, most of you skin bags are born with these things," chuckled Wraith as Nezumi's curiosity got the better of him, and he leaned over the edge in time to see the haunter's hand tossing several small, black, flat things out, "I'm just testing my new limits. Ah! Here we go!"

"What's that for?" inquired Nezumi, watching as the haunter's three fingered hand lifted a flat, shiny round thing from the pile of junk at the bottom of the drawer.

"Evidence!" cackled Wraith as somewhere beneath the desk a quiet mechanical sound signaled the opening of a small empty tray.

"Eh, whatever," replied Nezumi with a shrug, rapidly becoming bored and wondering where the kitchen was.

"Alright. Let's go," came his friends voice a moment later, this time without the odd reverberation from the speakers.

"Do you get to eat now?" Nezumi inquired, ignoring the strange sounds coming from the computer, paying more attention to keeping himself still as Wraith picked him up again.

"So much that you'll have to evolve a larger stomach," assured Wraith as he exited the computer with a strangely wet sound and flew them both towards the door.

"Great!" exclaimed Nezumi excitedly, rubbing his forepaws together and not paying attention as the ghost passed non-corporally through the wooden door, and he himself went crashing into it before landing on the carpet.

"Jerk," he muttered, exhaling all the air from his lungs before preparing to crawl through the small opening that separated the door from the floor.

"Sorry," came Wraith's muffled apology as he waited for Nezumi to squirm out the other side, "I forgot."

"Yeah, well just don't- Hey, what's that smell?"

"I don't smell anything," replied Wraith with a chuckle, knowing that Nezumi was perfectly well aware of his lack of a nose.

"Hm, this isn't good," the rattata muttered, his nose close to the floor as he crawled about, barely remembering to yank his tail through the small opening.

"So what is it?" inquired Wraith in a bored tone, glancing down the short hallway towards what he suspected was the kitchen.

"I dunno," replied Nezumi pensively, glancing over his shoulder as he followed the bored ghost down the hall, "But something nasty's been sitting outside that room quite a bit lately."

"Well, it's not here now," replied Wraith, only half paying attention as he pushed a door open and peered inside.

"Yeah, but, can't you like, 'feel' it, or somethin'?" Nezumi persisted, suddenly feeling his skin crawl as he glanced over his shoulder and noticed a few short dark hairs mixed in with his coat, "Somethin' mighty creepy?"

"Naw, all I sense is stress," said the ghost hungrily, licking his lips as he sailed into the kitchen and began absorbing the residual traces of human emotion that still hung about the room.

Nezumi shook his head in dismay, his hunger temporarily forgotten as he yanked a course black hair off his back and gave it a quick sniff. "Ew!" he exclaimed, tossing it away in disgust, "reminds me of somethin', but I'm not sure what. Hm. Now where has Fang Face gotten himself off to?"

Within the kitchen, Wraith had to keep himself from laughing as he floated along the pristine aisles, past workstations and gas-  
powered ovens where busy humans had exerted so much energy in a relatively short period of time. The emotional residue wasn't as fresh as it would be coming straight from the source, but it wasn't exactly stale either.

With a wide grin, the haunter let his fingers trail through the invisible pockets of tension, anger and joy, cackling to himself as he sampled everyone, discerning more than twenty distinct human presences in the expansive kitchen.

"Tasty, tasty..." he murmured, not noticing as Nezumi scampered along the dark aisles with a worried expression upon his face.

"There's that scent again," commented the rattata, scampering under a counter and sniffing around until he found the passing scent of one of his own kind mingled with the peculiar scent of whatever guarded the door to the office.

"Yo, Fang Face!" he called quietly, "You noticed any sign of that weird thing yet?"

"Huh?" called Wraith, lost in his own musings as he greedily feasted upon every bit of emotional residue he could find left over by the controlled chaos of the busy kitchen.

"Forget it," Nezumi muttered, trying to follow the rattata scent but finding the nauseating scent of chemical floor cleaner clogging his senses as soon as he emerged from underneath the workstation, "Just help me find where they keep the food. I can't think on an empty stomach anyway."

Wraith let out a loud belch, having cleansed the room of any trace of human passage on the spiritual level. "It's over there," he muttered, reaching out one of his hands to direct the rattata, "Here, I'll get the door for you."

"Thanks," Nezumi replied, his stomach suddenly growling as the followed the hand to a row of gigantic steel doors. With little effort, Wraith's spectral hand yanked the lever attached to one of them, and the door slid open with a quiet hiss, "Yikes-!"

Nezumi cursed and tried to shield his eyes from the blinding light that switched on in the room beyond. As he stood blinking, the rattata could feel the cooler air billowing out around him and the distinct scents of several kinds of expensive cheeses traveling with it, disguised by the dozen other scents that filled what was only one of several walk-in coolers.

"Wow," chuckled Nezumi wryly as he stood up on his hind legs to get a better look, "If I was a Disney character, I'd break into song!"

"Good thing you're not," shuddered Wraith, floating in several feet above Nezumi's head and giving the room a quick scan. "Oooh!" he commented after a moment, "Someone's been doing something they shouldn't in here!"

Nezumi tried not to worry about what the ghost was on about, and instead set about clambering up one of the tall wooden shelves to where the cheeses were located. "Mine," he chuckled to himself, momentarily forgetting about the strange scent and the itchiness he felt where the creature's stray hairs had touched him, "All mine!"

"Have fun," cackled Wraith, quickly absorbing the emotions of two lover's who seemed to have made the warmest of the cool-rooms a convenient place to steal kisses at work before going intangible and passing through the wall to the next room.

"What the-!" he exclaimed, blinking loudly as his spectral senses picked up the emotions of great amusement and mild satisfaction.

Curiously, Wraith concentrated and caused the eerie glow to return to his eyes. What he saw gave him a confused sensation of amusement and sudden remorse. The room was similar to the previous one, only far colder, with a special table set aside for meat wrapping in the center, and hanging in a neat row from the ceiling were several mismatched forms of creatures Wraith half recognized.

At first he dismissed them as the usual tauros, piloswine, and the occasional mareep humans were known to have a taste for, but his time haunting Miranda's pokedex told him otherwise. There weren't many, and Wraith's quick analysis of the room's emotional residue told him that this room served a special purpose. Something dark and Machiavellian that made him smile, but it was the sight of one deceased pokemon that made the humor of the situation pass rather quickly. 

"I hope this isn't what I know it is..." Wraith muttered nervously, biting the ends of his fingers as he reached his other hand to touch what he was certain was one of Nezumi's distant relatives.

"Okay, that's it," the ghost muttered, turning away as the body swung ominously back and forth, setting several others off as well, "I think that disk should be ready, and his hard drive nice and formatted!"

Wraith passed through the metal door as though it were nothing and took a deep breath before chuckling at himself for imitating the reaction he'd seen in his mortal friends. "Weird," he muttered, glancing down at his hands, "I almost feel unnerved by that experience. I must be hanging around the living a little too much."

"Then perhaps you should go back to living amongst the dead," hissed a voice that caused a peculiar chill to run through Wraith.

Unwilling to be intimidated, the haunter swiveled to face the unfamiliar sound, quickly reviewing the exact wording of what was said in pokespeak to hear the sound that would meet human ears. "Umbreon."

"Ah! I see that you've discovered part of our little secret," the feminine voice continued with a low, sinister chuckle that made Wraith smile.

"Your intimidation is amateurish," chided the haunter, discerning the dark shape of something quadrupedal, with long slender ears and a short tail that twitched unpleasantly at the ghost's comment. 

"What!" the umbreon hissed as an eerie yellow glow appearing upon her forehead in the shape of a small ring, "How dare you! I am a creature of darkness! And you! You are but a shadow of that true darkness!"

"Oh, give it up!" laughed Wraith, refusing to take the evolved eevee seriously even as he quickly searched his memory for information on the twisted little vulpine before him, "You're like one of those pretentious humans who paint their skin white, dye their hair black and go around muttering 'Oh the angst! I'm so do dead! Like, oh woe is me! I think I'll go and brood now!'"

The umbreon glowered, her eyes gleaming red in the darkness. "Watch your tongue, spirit," she warned as peculiar green sparks ignited between his teeth as she spoke, "Lest I awaken my master and we discover what the culinary properties of haunter's are!"

"Hey, Fang Face, what's shaken'?" inquired Nezumi, waddling out of the first cold room with a rather full stomach, "Whoa-! Who's the Goth chick?"

The umbreon turned her attention to Nezumi the instant he appeared, her nostrils flaring as she caught his scent. "Ah!" she chuckled hungrily, "Another tasty rattata dares to venture into my master's darkened kitchen!"

"Well," commented Nezumi with a wide grin, his whiskers twitching as he oriented on the dark shape, "You ain't so bad lookin' yourself, little lady!"

"Um, I think she means to eat you, Nezumi," interrupted Wraith drolly.

"Oh. Well that's no good."

"For you, perhaps," chuckled the umbreon at Nezumi's sudden disappointment, taking a few quiet steps forward as her teeth gleamed dangerously.

"Look, uh, we really should be going," said Wraith, dropping one of his hands to grab Nezumi by the scruff of the neck.

"Oh, no!" chuckled the umbreon, "I can't allow myself to appear to be a bad hostess. Won't you stay? Won't you stay, for dinner!"

At that moment, Salmonella let loose with the attack she'd been withholding. Sickly green flames burst forth from the end of her short snout, filling the kitchen with an unnatural green light whose shadows seemed alive with malevolence.

"Incoming!" shouted Nezumi as Wraith yanked the rattata and himself out of the way, barely evading the attack.

"What was that!" the haunter exclaimed as the flames died away and the dark eevee chuckled at them.

"Bale Fire," she replied with a satisfied grin, "something new my master cooked up for me. And you know, it's VERY effective against ghosts. Which is unfair really, seeing as all your pathetic techniques will barely breach my defenses."

"She's right," muttered Wraith as though through gritted teeth, "There isn't much I can do that'll touch her."

"Ha! Then we'll just have to double team her!" replied Nezumi confidently, his eyes gleaming as he grinned broadly at the umbreon, "Alright, Fang Face! Hit her with everything you've got!"

Salmonella yawned and sat down on her haunches to scratch herself behind the ear as Wraith held out his hands dramatically. "Nightshade won't help you," she replied in a bored tone as a field of eerie green light formed around her in a thin bubble and dark purple lightning crackled across Wraith's stubby pointed fingertips.

"Maybe not," chuckled Nezumi from his precarious position, a sphere blue/white light forming just inside his mouth, "But a little something the Boss Lady likes to call 'Hypothermia' just might!"

As one, the two pokemon fired off their attacks. Wraith's nightshade arching from his hands in a wide, wavering beam of dark purple un-light, as the crackling blue/white beam of cold burst forth from Nezumi in a thin cone.

The two peculiar attacks merged partway to their target, and immediately altered one another, shifting through various colour combinations as they seemed to struggle against one another. Finally, though, they became one. A long thin beam of focused indigo that snaked and arched its way to its target like a hungry serpent before striking hard and fast against the umbreon's force field.

Salmonella let out a frightened shriek as the barrier collapsed and the beam of frozen nightshade ploughed into her. The result was an explosion of purple light that crackled with blue/white lightning, and left the floor tiles both frozen and warped. The result to Salmonella however, was a very angry, and very cold umbreon sailing across the room and crashing into a pile of neatly stacked pots and pans.

"Y-You'll pay for that!" she promised once the cacophony of crashing metal subsided, "I'll swallow your souls!"

"Hey!" called Wraith from the door to the hallway as he flew at breakneck speed from the room, "That's MY line!"

"Ah! Swallow this!" laughed Nezumi, sending a poorly aimed ice beam into wall several meters away from the umbreon before being whisked out of the room.

"We'll need to get through that door again, eh," warned Wraith, straining to keep Nezumi aloft as the rattata kept looking back and firing ice-beams in the general direction of the kitchen.

"Huh? Oh, yeah! Sorry!" chuckled Nezumi, refusing to take the pretentious little pokemon who claimed to eat rattatas seriously, "Just drop me off here!"

"Gladly!" agreed Wraith, letting go of Nezumi before making a second sharp turn and phasing back through the office door.

The rattata, meanwhile, found himself rolling down the carpeted hall towards a distant set of stairs. When he at last came to a halt at the foot of those stairs, feeling a bit bruised, but relatively unharmed due to the carpeted floor, Nezumi found himself looking up into a pair of gleaming red eyes.

"Oh no, not another one!" he grumbled, flipping over onto his feet and running back towards the exit as a large black form swooped down and up, barely missing him.

"Deb!" shouted Salmonella from the opposite end of the hall, "We have an intruder!"

"Well, duh!" laughed the murkrow, gliding along near the ceiling and waiting for the right moment to swoop down and devour the rattata with her sharply curved beak.

"Ya got yerself a flair for graspin' the obvious, babe!" laughed Nezumi, skidding to a halt at the office door and concentrating for a moment, "But it ain't gonna help ya!"

"What the-!" exclaimed both pokemon as Nezumi's body glowed with a brilliant white light before expanding and changing shape until he stood as a significantly larger raticate.

"Evolution won't help you, tasty one," hissed the umbreon as Nezumi's incisors gleamed before he sank them into the door and ripped it off its hinges.

"Running won't save you!" the dark-eevee continued as Nezumi disappeared into the room and both pokemon gave chase once again, "Nothing will save you-!"

As the two dark types reached the open doorway, the door came flying out at them. Salmonella let out a high-pitched shriek and flattened herself out; the murkrow wasn't as lucky, however. Deb hit the door like a bug hitting a windshield and let out a sharp squawk before dropping like a stone.

"Heh, I suppose I'll have to pay for that too, eh?" commented Nezumi sarcastically, giving the angered umbreon a wide grin before bounding towards the single window and bursting through the glass to freedom.

"Something like that," spat the umbreon, suddenly noticing an awful grinding noise coming from one corner of the room.

She sniffed the air and caught the unfamiliar tang of ozone, the sharp smell of melting plastic and finally a peculiar scent of fusing copper wire. Cautiously, Salmonella crept closer to the increasingly louder grinding noise. As she peered curiously under the desk, the smells got stronger and what the dark one saw made her eyes widen with anxiety.

The large white box with several small green blinking lights did not look happy. The lights had all started flashing red, and as she watched it began to shake violently as white smoke rose lazily up from all the seams. And finally, once the awful grinding sounds halted, both the strange little trays slid open, each one dripping with a noxious clear/green ooze that slowly sublimated from the intense heat the metal box was giving off.

"Oh dear," Salmonella muttered, taking several steps back and deciding to check on Deb, "The master is not going to like this...!"

Miranda awoke with the morning sun shining painfully in her eyes and something cold poking her in the nose. Grumbling incoherently, she opened one eye and saw Nezumi poking her with his nose.

"You're back," she whispered happily, reaching her hand out from beneath the blankets to scratch him between the ears, "Find anything useful, dear?"

The rattata gave her an unusually pensive look, and nodded.

"What's wrong?" inquired Miranda, her tone becoming instantly serious as she momentarily tried to sit up before realizing that she still had Misty sleeping on top of her.

Nezumi sighed heavily and held aloft the small teacup Miranda had given him. 'It's bad, Miri,' he whispered in pokespeak, 'and I need a drink.'

Miranda gave the little creature a look of concern, knowing that Nezumi never dropped his sarcasm. His tone never became so serious, even in a dangerous situation. "What time is it?" she asked rhetorically, reaching unsuccessfully for her watch, which she'd left on top of the dresser.

'I'll get it for ya,' offered Nezumi, giving Miranda a second jolt of worry.

"This IS serious," she told herself, feeling a deep sense of dread creep in around the corners of her wary mind as the rattata leaped up onto the dresser and tossed her down the watch.

"Oh, Nezumi," Miranda muttered, shaking her head in dismay, "It's much too early for this."

Nezumi shrugged and sat down on his haunches as Miranda spent quite a bit of time reluctantly extricating herself from her lover before sliding out of bed and stumbling groggily towards the door.

'Boss Lady!' Nezumi hissed warningly.

"Huh? Wha-? Oh yeah!" chuckled Miranda, tossing her hair out of her eyes as she turned around and picked up the long t-shirt she usually wore to bed, "I forgot I was naked..."

Miranda returned a short time later with a mug she'd found in the kitchen filled nearly to the rim with sweet smelling Earl Gray. As she shut the door quietly behind her, the woman spotted Nezumi giving her a quizzical look from the cluttered dresser.

"I still say it's too early, she whispered, taking a sip of the steaming liquid as she glanced down at the over turned clock on the floor and noticed it was now barely half past seven.

Nezumi nodded, his expression still sullen as he held up his small teacup hopefully. Miranda nodded in response and after carefully navigating the cluttered floor, spooned a bit of her drink into her rattata's cup.

"The sugar'll probably put you in a better mood," Miranda teased, smiling maternally and scratching Nezumi between the ears, "Now then. Where's Wraith?"

The little rattata motioned nonchalantly with his tail to where Miranda's backpack lay open on the floor. "The 'dex?" his trainer inquired, and Nezumi nodded in agreement, wincing at the tea's temperature as he lapped it up.

Miranda sighed heavily as she sat cross-legged on the floor and set her tea down. "I don't know why I just don't take this thing in for repairs," she muttered to herself with a yawn, all the while digging through her overcrowded backpack blindly.

After more than a minute, the courier's hand grasped something small, plastic, and nearly icy cold to the touch. "Over doing it a little this morning, aren't we, dear?" she inquired rhetorically as she wrenched the small rectangular object free of a week's worth of dirty laundry.

There was no response from the object, but the small, battered looking device uncommonly known as an "Electronic Parazoological Encyclopedia & Data Input/Output Device", and commonly known as a "Pokedex" did seem somehow more abused and battered than the last time she'd been bothered to use it.

For a moment Miranda smiled, recalling only a few short years ago when she'd found Wraith, and how she'd tricked him out of a Sylph Co mainframe and into her 'dex. It hadn't been pretty, but since then, the device was like a second pokeball to the ghost, and the poor thing showed the scars.

The outer casing (which was allegedly bullet proof, but Miranda had yet to test the theory) had once been the subtle purplish colour that all pokedexes given to Lav'Brats were, but after years of ghostly inhabitation, the colour had drained to nearly white (a fact that not even the world's premier spectral-zoologist could explain), and along the center where it split in half like a book, a series of unexplainable scorch marks had formed. The casing was also beaten and battered, with scratches that looked like claw marks, and dents that couldn't possibly be explained by any known weapon or pokemon technique. 

With a bit of physical exertion, Miranda was able to pry the device open, instinctively flinching as bits of melted plastic broke off and the pokedex made an unpleasant rattling noise from inside as though something important had dislodged. And as the two halves separated, with an unpleasant creaking noise not unlike the wary groan of old bones being forced into action, the array of internal problems became more evident.

On the right-hand side, the small "dvorak" keyboard was missing two function keys, nine letters from the alphabet, and the 'Enter' key. Several others were either stuck in the pressed position, wouldn't move when one pushed down on them, or had their letters or numbers rubbed off completely. Also, the odd bits of wires and internal circuitry that stuck out from the long gash near the edge weren't very encouraging.

The problems with the left-hand side weren't as visible, but were just as bad. The small 128bit colour flat screen that took up most of the area had one large crack across it, with several smaller cracks radiating outwards, yet somehow the monitor still functioned. (A fact that Miranda knew better than to question.) Even when it was turned off, the screen occasionally flickered with eerie florange and octarine lights now and then, and to make matters worse, the internal speaker which Miranda was certain she'd yanked out of the thing the first day she had it, occasionally let out a low hissing sound.

But it wasn't the physical appearance of Miranda's pokedex that made most repair shop employees run in fear, go mad, or start writing bad HP Lovecraft fanfics. It wasn't even the fact that sometimes when Miranda's pokedex was closed, its batteries yanked out and buried, and Wraith at least a thousand miles away, safely locked in his pokeball that the 'dex still occasionally leaked ectoplasm around its charred edges. It was more the indeterminate, and only barely discernable aura of "wrongness" that surrounded the device.

Nearly anyone who came in contact with the practically cursed artifact felt a feeling quite similar to the sensation one got when in close proximity of the Lavender Tower. One could almost feel the negative planar energy flowing in and out of the pokedex. A feeling that seemed to increase as the night of All Hallow's Eve approached, and even people who didn't believe in ghost types still said that it "felt" haunted. The device's aura was so bad infact, the one person stupid enough to steal it from Miranda was still sitting in a VERY brightly lit room in the Gringy City Asylum for the terminally insane.

But none of this bothered Miranda. Anymore. She'd long since tuned out the occasional quiet screams from her backpack, the people who fled at the sight of her, making warding signs any time she actually needed to use the device, and the strange bone chilling sensation she got while holding it. The courier knew the ghost that haunted her pokedex, and where his loyalties were.

"Wraith?" Miranda inquired quietly, stifling a yawn as tapped the small gray screen politely, "You awake dear?"

The response came a moment later in the sound of a quiet creaking, like the sound of an ancient wooden door being slowly forced open against the will of its rusting hinges, followed by the sound of heavy booted feet stomping their way up a flight of rickety wooden stairs. As the sounds faded, a quiet sinister chuckle filled the air and Miranda had to smile. Her haunter was courteous enough to project the effect only into his trainer's mind. There was no sense waking up the rest of the gym after all.

"G-g-g-good eeeeevening," came the stammered hissing of the reason Miranda had yanked out the pokedex's speaker so long ago. The annoying, far too perky at seven thirty in the morning sounding voice of some nameless lab assistant who probably received royalties every time some kid pointed his 'dex at a wild pokemon. The fact that it seemed to be desperately trying to do either a Vincent Price or Peter Lori impression was its only real saving grace, so Miranda had yet to chastise Wraith about it.

'Morning, you mean,' Miranda corrected, thinking the words as hard as she could to ensure the ghost caught them.

'V-v-voice pattern authorization recognized,' the pokedex intoned, causing Miranda to set the device down with a wary sigh as she reached for her tea and decided to just sit back and enjoy the ride.

'Miranda Lilcamp,' the voice stated with a bit of a snicker, not unlike someone trying not to laugh halfway to the punch line as the spoken words scrolled up from the bottom of the screen, 'Type: 5'2" to about 5'8"-! Oh-! I mean "Normal"...'

What followed would have caused tea to come out Miranda's nose had she not been holding it shut to keep from laughing as she convulsed with contained amusement. 'You really need to get out more!' sent the courier in a laughing tone as she followed along with the words written by Wraith to amuse her...

"Miranda Lilcamp

TYPE: 5'2" to about 5'8"-! Oh-! I mean 'Normal' CLIMATE/TERRAIN: 1313 Mockingbird Lane, Under the stairs (Just kidding!), Lavender Town ACTIVITY CYCLE: Any (But is cranky and irritable first thing in the morning)  
NO. APPEARING: 1 (Unique)  
FREQUENCY: Very Rare ORGANIZATION: Solitary+Minions- Err, companions... Yes. That's it!  
DIET: Omnivore (But won't eat anything that barks, meows, or has a blowhole)  
SIZE: M (Height: 5'5", Weight: None of your freakin' business)  
MORALE: 17/20 (When defending loved ones. Aww)  
CHALLANGE RATING: UNBELIEVABLLY Powerful! Oh, I mean 5.  
TREASURE TYPE: C (Credit card, funky wooden sword, artifact level tea cups... Okay, maybe not, but they ARE an heirloom)  
ALIGNMENT: Neutral Good (Chaotic Good between the hours of 5am and 10am)  
HIT DICE: 5+2 (30)  
INITIATIVE+3 MOVEMENT: 30/90 (On bike. For short distances/down hills probably faster. shrug)  
ARMOR CLASS: 12/13 (In Winter)  
ATTACK+5 DAMAGE: 2/1D6+3 (Mithril reinforced bokken)  
FACE/REACH: 5 Ft.  
SPECIAL QUALITIES: Bardic Poetry, Evasion SPECIAL ATTACKS: Can summon up to 1-3 Pokemon SPECIAL DEFENCES: Winter clothing provides +1 AC Bonus, Nezumi and Umi will fight to the death to save her. Wraith? Been there, done that, bought the T-Shirt:)P MAGIC RESISTANCE: Nil SAVES: Fort +3, Ref +7, Will +2 WEAKNESSES: NONE! None I tell you! Oh, sorry... Ghost/Fighting Techniques, and her own cooking.  
ABILITIES: Str: 12, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 13, Cha 15 SKILLS: Balance 2, Bluff 3, Climb 3, Diplomacy 3, Hide 2,  
Knowledge Geography 4, Knowledge History (Lavender Town) 3, Intimidation 2, Innuendo 3, Intuit Direction 5, Listen 3, Move Silently 2, Sense Motive 4, Performance 8, Ride: Bike 7, Ride: Motor Vehicle 3, Spot 4, Swim 4, Wilderness Lore 3 Languages: Common, Rodent, Draconic, Spectral FEATS: Blind Fighting, Skill Focus (Performance), Quick Draw, Weapon Focus (Bokken) ADVANCEMENT: 1D6+2 HP/Level (Courier)"

Miranda let out a wary, mournful sound as she rubbed her wary eyes and shook her head. "Wraith, Wraith, Wraith..." she muttered quietly not noticing as a dark, spectral figure flowed out of the pokedex and hovered as a gaseous ball of dark purple and black ethereal smoke.

"Haaaaaunt?" inquired Wraith as he solidified into something more recognizable, his usual mirth somewhat subdued.

"To speak the name is to invoke the power?" inquired Miranda rhetorically, peering over her hand and just under her glasses at the grinning and nodding haunter.

"Tatta!" whispered Nezumi harshly from across the room atop the dresser, causing Miranda to glance over her shoulder in time to see Misty roll over in her sleep, her hand clutching the thick blanket as an odd look crossed her face.

"Miri?" she inquired, her voice barely audible.

"There in a second," the courier promised, glancing back at the haunter. "How about we do this in a couple of hours, okay, dear?"

Wraith and Nezumi exchanged pensive looks, and Miranda was certain that the haunter "sent" something private to the rattata, but it was still much too early to be bothered by something so trivial.

"Goodnight," Miranda muttered with a dismissive wave of her hand before setting her tea down for either Nezumi to finish or to evaporate and shuffled back out of her long shirt before getting back into bed.

"Eh, let 'em sleep for now," commented Nezumi a few minutes later as Wraith hovered closer to him, a concerned look crossing the ghost's face, "Humans is sensitive about these sorts a things."

The haunter nodded in agreement, experimentally touching Miranda's dreams with his mind before quickly withdrawing. 'Curses,' he thought, knowing better, 'All pleasant. Oh well, there'll be a yummy, tasty nightmare or two for me to feast upon before this is over.'

"So," he whispered briskly, turning his attention back to Nezumi, "How's the tea?"

The rattata grinned at his friend and tapped his forehead with his paw. "Link up, good buddy," offered Nezumi with a bit more of his usual levity, "and find out...!"

It was nearly noon by the time Miranda opened her eyes again and glanced at her watch. 'Odd,' she thought, listening carefully, but hearing nothing other than the sound of Misty's breathing, 'The terrible trio must have overslept.'

"Must've been all the noise," Miranda chuckled, suddenly realizing that she was alone.

For a second, a sense of selfish panic shot through her, only to be dismissed by the sound of the door opening. "Hey, you're up," Misty commented with a smile as she entered the room in a bathrobe, still brushing the water from her hair.

"Actually I'm surprised I got to sleep in this morning," commented Miranda sitting up as Misty sat down on the bed next to her.

"That's because my sisters left fairly early," Misty explained, "They left a note saying they'd be back before dark, but I'm not terribly concerned."

Miranda nodded and reached for the cold tea she'd given up on earlier, wincing soon afterwards as she realized how strong it had gotten after a few hours. 'Hm, I still have to ask those two what they found last night,' she told herself inwardly, but her attention was mainly focused on Misty as she finished brushing out her hair.

"You know," she said uncertainly, "I've been thinking of leaving it down from now on."

"Not a bad idea," replied Miranda with an encouraging smile as she studied Misty's expression.

"I just think that I've proven my point to the world," Misty continued after a moment's thought, "I'm not like 'them' and I think that's as obvious as its ever going to be. Besides, I think I outgrew that hairstyle a few years ago."

"'Never grow up any more that you absolutely have to,'" quoted Miranda, finally giving up on the tea.

"Something your dad used to say?"

Miranda shook her head. "Aunt Laurna," she corrected with a thoughtful look, "I think that's why all the kids like her. She always used to say that she only became an adult because then no one could tell her what to do. It's odd how her and my mom are so different. Oh well."

Misty set down the hairbrush and glanced out the window, for a moment trying to recall her own parents, only to interrupted by a sudden odd popping sound and a series of sparks arching into the air.

"Wha-!" she began, leaping to her feet and spotting Miranda's half open pokedex on the floor amongst the clutter. The device made a whining gurgling sound for a moment, before the dark spectral shape of Wraith began to emerge.

"Where's Nezumi?" inquired Miranda with an amused grin as Misty shrank away from the widely yawning ghost.

"Tatta!" the second pokemon called from the top drawer of the dresser, sticking his head out at the sound of his name.

Miranda sat up properly and slid her hand around Misty's waist, smiling contentedly as her lover leaned back against her. "Okay," she told the two would be spies as Misty handed her her glasses, "Let's have it."

Wraith nodded and immediately threw up an illusion of the restaurant's enormous kitchen from his point of view upon first entering, and panning the image around before heading towards the cheese room.

"So, besides you guys raiding the fridge did you actually find out anything useful?" chuckled Miranda, watching a greatly exaggerated version of Nezumi devour an entire wheel of cheese in one gulp.

Wraith nodded, and both his eyes spun around to the other side of his body as one of his hands shot out and snatched something from Miranda's backpack. "Haunt," he replied, tossing Misty the silver compact disk he'd had Chef Troy's computer make before melting down.

"Cute," Misty commented, holding the disk carefully as she turned her attention back to the illusion, "I'll pop it into Violet's computer and see if there's anything actually useful on it afterwards."

Wraith nodded insistently for a moment before shifting the image to show how he'd phased through the wall. What they saw on the other side made both humans cringe.

"Is, is that what I think it is?" inquired Misty, her tone sounding queasy as the image panned the room and focused on the door.

"That's not all," replied Miranda, her tone so serious that for a moment she actually reminded herself of her mother, "Wraith, pan back a bit. There."

Miranda leaned forward a little and squinted as the slightly blurred image from Wraith's memory showed one of the shelves that lined the walls. Upon one shelf in particular were several brown wrapped packages with stenciled words that would have meant nothing to the haunter, but Miranda could read them quite clearly.

'Growlithe, raticate, psyduck...' Miranda assimilated most of the fairly lengthy list of names and nodded carefully, until the thought that was brewing in her mind was interrupted by Misty's sudden lurch forward.

"I think I'm gonna be sick!" came her muffled exclamation as she covered her mouth and ran from the room.

Miranda glanced at the row of sinister packages one last time and nodded. "That's enough," she told Wraith before grabbing her nightshirt and sliding it on before leaving the room.

Wraith nodded again and the illusion faded.

'Think she'll be okay?' inquired Nezumi from the partially open dresser drawer.

Wraith shrugged. 'You're mortal, you tell me,' he replied glumly, feeling strangely bad for upsetting his human's lover.

Nezumi sighed warily and shook his head. 'Well, I know how I'd feel if I just took a bite of one of my friends, but she's a tough one. I wouldn't worry too much.'

'Think we'll be getting a second shot at that umbreon?' pondered Wraith aloud.

'I hope so,' chuckled Nezumi, a peculiar gleam shining in his eyes...

Misty sat down on the marble steps leading up to the tub as Miranda gave the toilet a final flush and sat down beside her. "You okay now?" she whispered sympathetically, putting her arm around Misty who was once again covering her mouth and breathing in long slow breaths.

After a moment, Misty glanced up at Miranda and nodded, her eyes showing more anger than tears. "If- If I recall Cerulean City's policy on this, it's illegal to serve psyducks without the person ordering's knowledge..." she said slowly, wondering if Frank was available to check up on the law.

"Still," Miranda replied, rubbing Misty's back and trying to give her some small hope, "Just because they had it in the kitchen, doesn't mean you actually ate it."

Misty met her lover's gaze with a sudden look of despair. "That's why you're not freaking out, isn't it?" she said as more of a statement than a question, causing Miranda's heart to suddenly sink and her stomach to contract, "What was left of the raticate we saw. You don't think you actually..."

Miranda turned away, letting Misty's words trail off for the moment. "Let's check the disk," she said simply, "Let's not make this any worse than it absolutely has to be."

Misty nodded, leaning against Miranda for support. "You don't suppose," she pondered quietly, "That this is just a coincidence? I mean; we didn't actually see Kathy at the restaurant last night. Maybe that was just some kind of special delicates room. I'm sure that they had lots of other tasty things stored away elsewhere. I mean, we did make a rather large delivery and all-"

Her lover turned back to her with a suddenly intense look of concern. "You don't suppose," inquired Miranda darkly, "That we delivered that stuff do you?"

"Nothing would surprise me at this point," sighed Misty glumly as she got to her feet and held her hand out to Miranda, "Now come one, let's check the disk. If we don't find anything about Kathy on it, we'll just head back and question James some more."

Miranda nodded defeatedly, gladly taking Misty's hand and letting herself be pulled to her feet. "There is one thing I'm thankful for, though."

"Oh? What's that?" asked Misty, guiding her lover by the hand.

"That you don't think I'm crazy," answered Miranda with a weak smile.

Misty paused and turned towards the courier with a look of mild amusement. "I can handle crazy," she replied, giving Miranda a gentle kiss before leading her down the hall, "Now come on, we have to find out what's up with 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue'..."

Miranda just didn't feel like cheering with the rest of the crowd as down near the water's edge, Misty's staryu Shadow trounced another pokemon in nearly no time at all.

"It almost seems somehow unfair," Miranda muttered to the rattata on her shoulder as they both sat glumly in the bleachers, watching as Misty took on every challenger she could find in an attempt to work off a little anger, "She's had that staryu for what? More than a decade? Shadow's probably the toughest staryu in the planet by now. Oh well..."

The afternoon had not gone well. The disk Wraith had obtained had indeed contained useful information, but Miranda knew that it would. The ghost had a way with computers, and although he was completely illiterate, he seemed able to read the machine code side of text files.

Most of the disk was taken up by recipes, most of them calling for more mundane ingredients, but having extra footnotes about special substitutions. Infact, Chef Troy had a rather expansive library on the topic of what pokemon tasted near enough to others to be substituted without the average person noticing. He also had files on what could be legally served in what cities, and what pokemon in general were edible for human consumption, irregardless of legality or morality.

The files that most interested her, though, had been excerpts from a series of correspondences from several mysterious benefactors. At least one who seemed to know exactly what pokemon they both had. One who seemed to think it would be hysterically funny if Misty and Miranda both ate meals consisting of as many of their favorite pokemon as possible.

Chef Troy had added a few notes to this correspondence, detailing several possible meal choices he could make with the given pokemon, and the list of ingredients he'd need.

The only bright side to it was that none of Chef Troy's contacts seemed able to acquire a dratini for him. Miranda had almost cried when she read the Chef's apology to the benefactor in question, thankful that at least she'd been spared that. She was also thankful that both staryu's and starmie's were effectively inedible to humans, so Misty had at least been saved that heartache.

The fact that she'd eaten a bit of a psyduck did distress her though. As much as Misty complained about Kappa, she did care for the nearly useless creature in her own way.

Another of Chef Troy's correspondents sent him a rather odd list at his request. It detailed the names of those people on Cerulean City's city council, as well as the pokemon they owned. It didn't take long to find the list of possible Recipes and the letter asking for the additional supplies Chef Troy would require for his plan to work.

"Hey, kid!" called Frank, interrupting Miranda's dark reverie as down by the water Misty jumped up, cheering as Shadow scored a victory against another staryu, "You wanted to see me?"

Miranda glanced over and smiled weakly as her almost uncle sat down beside her waited patiently for her reply. "I... It's just-" she began, only to suddenly have Bow come out of nowhere and place her paws upon Miranda's knees, a pitifully helpless expression crossing the growlithe's face as she stared up at her.

"Come on," Miranda told her, patting her thigh as Bow let out a little whine and shuffled on her hind legs, still looking up at the woman imploringly.

"She's just being lazy," Frank chuckled, reaching over and pulling Bow up the rest of the way into Miranda's lap.

"I noticed!" commented Miranda, leaning back as Bow stood on her hind legs again and leaned against the woman in an attempt to say 'hi' to Nezumi. "Ow!" Miranda exclaimed, moving one of Bow's feet out of a bad spot, "Those AREN'T stepping stones ya know!"

Frank laughed and gave Bow an affectionate pat on the head as she crawled back into his lap after the look Nezumi gave her. "So tell me, Miri, what's the problem?"

Miranda took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as she turned all the information they'd found in her mind. "Okay," she said finally as several people in front of her insisted on doing the wave, "I have some information about 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue'."

"Hey now, Miri, don't swear!" chuckled Frank, waving his finger warningly at his niece, "What would your mother say?"

Miranda tried not to smile, but found her Uncle's usual good humor infectious. "You know what I mean," she chided teasingly, "But seriously, I have reason to believe that Chef Troy is up to something distinctly illegal."

"Fishing for magikarp out of season?"

"Blackmail, actually."

Frank searched his niece's eyes for a long moment and nodded. "I see," he said simply, his cop instincts telling him that there was much more, "Go on."

"Last night, at the restaurant, he had the City Councilors show up. Not just because it was the opening and he wanted to make a good impression, but also to feed them something special," Miranda explained, her glasses shimmering dramatically as she spoke, "Something he could use as leverage against them to make the Council change the laws in Cerulean City. To bring this place another step closer to being another Viridian!"

Frank tensed at the mention of Viridian City. It wasn't the sort of place most Pokeforce officers liked to think about too much, and certainly not with any pride. It was a well-known fact that that the Rocket's owned Viridian City out right. Not just metaphorically, but literally. It was said that what Pokeforce officers there were there, were either crooked, or wished they weren't. It was only the Pokeforce Security Company's strict rules about only upholding whatever laws a City put forth that kept the company in check.

Every city on the continent had the right to self-rule. Each city and town had a minimum of three councilors who met at least once a week to discuss any problems that had arisen. The City Councils didn't just run their respective cities and towns in name, they ran themselves ran them in fact. The Council members were traditionally those people who had acquired jobs that were essential to the city's well being. It wasn't uncommon for larger cities, like Cerulean itself, to have the head of the garbage collection agency sitting its council, or the head of the teacher's union, or even the owner of the local power plant that kept everyone from freezing in the dark.

The Council generally made decisions that helped the city's people. Especially considering that the title of Councilor Member didn't come with any extra perks like actually salary. All the money the City took in, had to by what was known as a 'Universal Law' had to be put back into the city. It was a thankless job monetarily, but it usually kept the citizens happy, and Council honest.

In Viridian, however, one wrong move by Pokeforce could mean the end of their contract. And without the handful of actual honest cops in a town run by gangsters, it meant that a lot of innocent people would suffer.

Miranda caught the look in her Uncle's eyes and smiled reassuringly. "Okay," she conceded, "perhaps I'm being a touch melodramatic, but in Viridian, they have no laws regarding what can and cannot be served in restaurants. That's what Chef Troy's trying to do here."

Frank rubbed his stubbly chin thoughtfully for a moment. "By giving us all a free meal?" he pondered, "Sounds more like bribery than blackmail."

Miranda gave her Uncle an exasperated look and forced herself to keep her voice down. "No!" she whispered harshly, "by feeding them they're favorite pokemon! He thinks he can get them to change the laws governing restaurants in exchange for not telling the public what they all had for dinner last night."

Frank's eyes widened for a moment as his niece glanced up at him in earnest. "M- Miri," the cop stammered, "I- I was there with J-  
Jenny... You don't suppose...?"

Miranda glanced down at Bow, who seemed more interested in a battle between Shadow and a persian than anything else. The woman nodded her head slowly, her whole body shaking. "I think so," she whispered in a quiet, carefully controlled tone.

"But, but I'm not even on the council!" croaked Frank, staring down at his growlithe with a deep sense of stomach turning dread, his hands held out in front of him defeatedly, "I- I can't have-!"

Bow's head turned and she smiled up at him lovingly, her tail swishing slowly, giving the man a concerned yip as his expression became pained. "I know," said Miranda sullenly, "But when Kathy's involved, expect the worst. I'm sorry, Uncle, but they got us too."

Frank's fingers clenched into fists as he closed his eyes and took several deep breaths. "Okay," he said carefully, setting his hands down, "Please tell me a few things. One, that that sociopath and her minions are still at the restaurant, two that you have actual evidence of Chef Troy's crimes, and thirdly..." Frank took a deep breath, calming his tone and steeling himself to ask the big question, "That you gathered all this information legally."

Miranda's paled. "Um... No," she said quietly, her gray eyes dropping in time to see Bow scratching playfully at Frank's hand, a sign that she was feeling ignored. "I, I actually had Nezumi and Wraith go in there last night to look for Kathy. I wanted to be sure she was there before I just ran in demanding her head on a plate."

Frank's voice was calm and businesslike. "Did they find her there?"

Miranda shook her head as the crowd around her gave a gasp of surprise that turned into a cheer. Misty had recalled Shadow and let loose with Leviathan. "No," the courier replied, "But Wraith somehow managed to copy most of the relevant information off Troy's hard drive. He doesn't mention Kathy either."

Her uncle made a thoughtful sound as she looked up to see him scratching Bow behind the ears thoughtfully. "Do you... Do you suppose that James guy lied to us?" Miranda inquired sadly.

Frank's gray eyes narrowed slightly as the area was lit up but a sudden burst of flame and the sound of a screaming shellder. "No," he said simply, turning to Miranda with an expression that told her he was in full cop mode, "I do believe that the 'not so good' professor Forester was at the dinner last night. It's Todd Burke and his wife Nancy who weren't there."

His niece's eyes widened for a moment as a few more things clicked into place. "She told us herself, didn't she?" asked Frank rhetorically, the look in his eyes showing just how much he loved piecing together mysteries, "she said 'It's amazing how much you can accomplish if you're willing to sacrifice a few dozen dittos'."

"All in the name of science," Miranda added bitterly.

Frank nodded, answering her next question before it could be asked. "And as for the real Mr. Burke," he paused for both dramatic effect, and to pull a small rectangular device from his belt, "Dead. He and his wife were found a few hours after the dinner at 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue'. Nat down in forensics says they'd been deceased for at least two days by the time she got to them."

"So you think they just took their places?" inquired Miranda, her tone equally rhetorical, "Kathy taking the place of Nancy and Victor masquerading as Todd?"

Frank nodded. "Remember the poetry contest, Miri?" Frank added, causing his niece to suddenly shudder with a sudden dark thought, "That machoke was theirs wasn't it?"

"Tashiro," spat Miranda bitterly, shaking her head slowly as she clenched and unclenched her fists, "I don't believe this..."

"Believe what?"

Miranda glanced up at her uncle with a look that mingled both betrayal and anger. "That contest was rigged, Uncle. There was no way I could have lost. I could have walked on stage and read from the freaking Neon Town phone directory and I would have won!" she exclaimed angrily, not caring that several people were turning to stare at her, "I poured my freaking heart out into a poem that expressed my love for that woman down there on the field there and read it aloud to hundreds of complete strangers to show just how good I am! And it doesn't matter! Because that fragging contest was rigged! I didn't win because of my talent, I won so that murdering psychopath could feed me raticate!"

Miranda had risen from her seat, her hands flailing angrily as she ranted, but now as she sat back down hard upon the long wooden bench, shaking all over, she hid her face in her hands and choked back a sob.

"Hey, Miranda," whispered Frank, his hand upon her shoulder as she leaned closer, "It's alright, kid. You do got talent; I know that, your lover knows that. All the people who heard you know that. Heck, even Kathy and Vic can't deny that! You'd've won that contest hands down even if it weren't fixed. You know that as well as I do, Miri. You got your Father's talent. Only way better."

Miranda nodded slowly, letting her Uncle hold her for a few moments as the tears that brimmed in her eyes refused to fall. "Thank you," she whispered quietly, feeling Nezumi scramble down into her lap to stare up at he with concern. "I, I just can't stand the feeling of being conspired against. Not like this," Miranda continued, running her fingertips in a line down Nezumi's back, more to find solace than to show affection but the small creature dimly understood, "Especially not when I'm tricked into using my talent to hurt someone I love."

"I hadn't thought of that," Frank replied, glancing down at the field in time to see Misty walking up the flight of steps between the benches. Her stance was confident, but her expression was concerned as the victorious trainer pushed her now soaking wet from the lake water splashing hair back over her ears with both hands before sitting down on the opposite side of Miranda.

"Thought of what?" she inquired, immediately putting an arm around Miranda who needed no further motivation to lean in her direction.

"Ya don't wanna know," answered Frank sincerely, shaking his head in dismay, hoping that the incident didn't cause his niece to stop writing.

"It's bad," Miranda replied, her head upon Misty's shoulder as she wiped away the stubborn tears, "But Uncle Frank's going to help us. Right?"

Frank glanced at the couple, their eyes looking up at him with such hope and desperation that his heart swelled in his chest. 'It's good to be a cop,' he sighed inwardly. "No," he said seriously, shaking his head and trying to keep from smiling as he clutched his badge and removed it from his uniform, "Not legally."

"Uncle Frank!" they both exclaimed in alarm, about to shout out a thousand words of betrayal before he raised a hand to silence them.

"As I said," he assured them dramatically, placing his badge and service revolver on the now empty bench before him, "Not 'legally'."

Miranda clenched her teeth as she watched her Uncle's tight smile for a moment, trying to decide whether she should hug or kill him. "Thanks, Uncle," replied Misty, noticing her lover's sudden indecisiveness and smiling in sudden amusement, "We don't know what to expect, so any help you could give us would be great."

Frank nodded once and picked up his revolver and badge once more. "Well," he said, giving Bow a gentle nudge before getting to his feet and pinning the badge back on, "what do you say you two ladies enjoy the rest of the day at the fair? I think it'd be best if we don't go busting in when there's innocent people around I'm thinking just after they close might be the best time to go and have a nice long chat with 'Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue'."

Miranda smiled and nodded appreciatively. "Where shall we meet you then?" she inquired carefully, glancing around to make sure that any curious listeners had long since moved on.

"The East Gate I suppose," said Frank with a shrug, "It's as good a place as any. Just after closing, I guess."

"Alright," his niece replied, waving nonchalantly as he jogged down the wooden stairs, "See you at 1am!"

"So," inquired Misty a few moments later, her wary expression pensive, "Wanna get something 'real' to eat?"

Miranda nodded, taking her lover's hand and giving it a squeeze. "Absolutely," she responded, dragging herself to her feet, "I think I'd like to have a bit of fun before we trek off into the night to thwart evil."

"That's a little melodramatic, don't you think?" teased Misty with a laugh, standing and gladly accepting her lover's arm around her waist.

"Would you expect anything less from me?"

"No way. It's one of the reasons I love you," Misty replied, giving Miranda a quick kiss before leading them down to ground level...

Chapter XIX

Misty's old beat-up alarm clock went off at exactly midnight, and a few minutes after Miranda had reached over and shut it off, they were both dressed and had quietly snuck out of the gym without waking anyone. The two then hopped on their bikes and coasted most of the way through a series of winding side streets, carefully avoiding the main road until they reached their destination.

As they rode through the small section of town dominated mostly by small family owned shops, Miranda heard a quietly squeaked warning in her ear. "What is it?" she asked, squeezing her handbrakes and taking her feet off the pedals as she skidded to a stop.

The rattata on her shoulder scurried down her arm to stand upon the bike's handlebars before sniffing the air again. "Nez," he confirmed with a nod, glancing meaningfully at Misty as she skidded to a stop beside Miranda.

"Something wrong?" she inquired, straining her ears to hear what concerned the little rodent so much, but all that she could make out was the gentle hum of the street lamps and quiet gurgling of the river only a block or so away.

"We're being watched," Miranda replied, leaning back and peering into the darkened storefronts as she slowly drew her bokken, "Any idea where, Nezumi?"

The rattata closed his eyes and stood on his hindquarters, his whiskers twitching slightly as he moved his head slowly from side to side. "Ra," he replied sadly glancing around with equal suspicion.

"It could be nothing," Misty offered, zipping her coat up a little higher as a sudden cold wind blew past them, heralding the entrance of a dark figure from a nearby alleyway.

"Nothing?" inquired Ash in a bitter tone as he stepped out into the street, "That's where you're wrong, 'old friend'."

"No," replied Miranda thoughtfully, "I think Misty's right. It was nothing."

"What!" the trainer exclaimed angrily, "Pikachu! Thu-! What-? Where-!"

There was a quiet snickering as Ash ran back into the alley and came back a moment later with a struggling pikachu in his arms. "Misty!" the trainer called out formally, setting the pokemon down but keeping a firm hold of the creature's shoulders, "I- I challenge you!"

Misty sighed, hiding her face in her hand as she shook her head in dismay. "We really don't have time for this," she muttered, glancing at him from between two fingers, "Why don't you just go home? I'm sure there's a hundred or so other people you've ticked off in the last couple of years who'd love a rematch."

"I don't care!" Ash exclaimed, stomping his foot and causing his pikachu to jump a little as he stared up at Misty apprehensively, "I've spent the last month and a half studying up on gyaradoses and I'm not about to let all that time go to waste!"

"You want to have a battle? Here?" Misty exclaimed in disbelief, looking around nervously and wondering how many people Ash's ranting had woken up already, "Between Charizard and Leviathan? Are you insane!"

"No," Ash replied simply, a cunning smile crossing his thin lips, "I intent to use Pikachu. A little lightning ought'a put you and that dragon of yours in your place."

"Whatever," Misty muttered, unzipping her coat again and pulling out a pokeball, "let's just get this over with..."

"And don't you dare interfere, cheater!" Ash warned, pointing angrily at Miranda.

"Misty can fight her own battles," the courier assured him, sheathing her sword and chuckling as Leviathan materialized beside his trainer, "And don't worry, Nezumi's saving the cryokinetics for later."

Ash glowered at her for a moment, barely noticing the loud; heavy breathing that caused a cloud of visible hot air to slowly rise all around him. Not to mention the quiet whimper that Pikachu let out as he tugged desperately at his trainer's pant leg.

"What is it now!" he demanded at last as Miranda glanced to her right smiling, "Can't you see I'm-! Oh man!"

Leviathan's long scaly body slowly uncoiled as he arched himself higher into the air before looming dangerously close to Ash, leering hungrily down at the large yellow furred rodent at his feet. The trainer looked into the gyarados's huge dark eyes and gulped as Leviathan hungrily drooled saliva that puddled at Pikachu's feet as the monstrous, amphibious serpent looked up to meet the impudent human's gaze.

"You still wanna battle?" Misty teased, she reaching out to run her fingers affectionately across Leviathan's glistening blue scales, causing the creature to turn his enormous head around to face her, "My little friend here hasn't eaten in a few hours and he's VERY hungry. Isn't that right, you little sweetheart?"

Ash's eyes widened in disbelief as he stood stammering, watching as Misty affectionately scratched the gyarados's eye ridges until Leviathan closed his eyes contentedly and made a happy growling sound somewhere deep in his throat.

"We- We're not afraid of some overgrown magikarp! Are we, Pikachu? Pikachu!" Ash's attempt at melodrama was brought to an abrupt halt as he glanced down at his feet and found himself alone.

"Come back here!" he shouted, running back a short distance to grab his pokemon who seemed to be in the process of sneaking away by the scruff of the neck, "Now thunderbolt that thing already!"

Leviathan's monstrous head swung around immediately, his suddenly glowing red eyes staring right into the smaller creature's soul as Ash held the hapless pikachu forward with both hands.

"Pika!" the electrokinetic rodent exclaimed in abject horror, scrambling to turn himself around in Ash's arms before tearing the lining of the trainer's coat to ribbons with his small claws in an attempt to escape.

"Your pikachu obviously doesn't want to battle," Miranda commented, not finding the situation as funny as her rattata seemed to, but making no motion to keep Nezumi from the sudden laughter he'd broken into, "Don't you know it's cruel to force someone you care about to do something they don't want to."

"Shut up!" shouted Ash accusingly, showing all too well that his maturity level still didn't match his age, "What do you know? You only do this fun! You don't take pokemon battles seriously! So stay out of this, amateur!"

Miranda sighed warily, almost feeling sorry for Ash as his desperate tone echoed in her ears, but refusing to baited by such a childish taunt. 'Well, at least she's holding it together,' the courier thought, glancing over at Misty who was now clenching her fists as she glared at her former traveling companion.

'Goodness she's beautiful when she's angry,' Miranda mused, blushing a bit as she felt her body react on a primal level. 'Oh my...' the courier thought inwardly, glancing down at herself as a peculiar tingle spread though her at about the same time Misty gritted her teeth and prepared to initiate an attack, 'What an odd thing to feel at a time like this...'

As Ash practically tossed poor Pikachu towards monstrous gyarados, Misty's words rang out into the night. "Leviathan! Tail-whip!"

"What!" laughed Ash as loudly and tauntingly as he could, even as the enormous serpent uncoiled his tong sinewy body and his finned tail lashed out in a wide arc, "You taught that fish of yours 'tail-whip'? Are you nuts? That's not even a real attack! It just-  
! Oh my-! Pikachuuuu!"

Had Miranda not been straddling her bike, she would have taken a step back. As she and Nezumi looked on in a mixture of awe and amusement, Leviathan snapped just the very end of his tail at Pikachu, filling the air with a quick sonic blast that rattled windows, popped everyone's eardrums and sent the smaller pokemon sailing into the air. 

"No! That's not fair-!" exclaimed Ash, hopping over the serpent's tail as he ran after his airborne pikachu who slowly rotated as he swiftly fell to earth at a sharp angle, screaming the entire way.

A short moment later, a frightened ball of yellow fur collided with and completely shattered the window of a deli, sending shards of sharp glass everywhere and the sound of a wailing alarm from within that joined with Pikachu's loud, angry exclamations to form an earsplitting cacophony.

"I'll get you for this!" shouted Ash as he ran the block and a half to where his pokemon had made a crash landing before leaping through the shattered window and madly tossing aside strings of linked sausages, wheals of cheese and blocks of dried meat out into the street in an attempt to rescue his friend.

A moment later, however, a blindingly bright light illuminated the area from behind the suddenly startled trainer. "Alright, buddy," called out a bored sounding voice with a hint of a Scottish accent, "I think that'll be quite enough, don't you?"

Ash turned to face the speaker, but immediately regretted it as the pokeforce officer's flashlight blinded him. "Off- Officer, I-" he stammered, only to feel the sharp sting of metal across his wrist before being easily thrown to the floor.

"Save it for Jenny," muttered Officer Geoff in an annoyed tone, his mind still obsessing on his dismissal from his job as a Sylph Co security guard after the incident that gave Miranda Lilcamp her gastly, but he hated owing Officer Frank more than anything. Even more than taking the cop's night patrol for him.

'Oh well,' thought Geoff, looking on the bright side for once as Ash struggled and complained, 'At least I caught myself a thief...'

Frank looked up as Bow let out a low whine. Down the street, approaching slowly from where Sea Breeze Way became Route 4, he could make out two figures on bicycles. As they approached, one waved silently.

"You ready?" the cop inquired, glancing down at the growlithe whose tail was going a mile a minute.

'Bring it on!' she yipped in pokespeak, causing Frank to chuckle lightly as he adjusted the folds of his long dark brown trench coat, the twin revolvers he wore making him a little self-  
conscious in regards to their concealablity.

Frank gave a short wave as his almost-niece and her lover skidded to a halt not far from where Frank was leaning against the back of the city's welcoming sign. "Have any trouble getting here?" he inquired with a mischievous smile as Miranda walked her bike towards him.

"Nothing we couldn't handle," the courier assured him with a chuckle as Nezumi hopped off the bike and scurried over to Bow, "Or Leviathan to be more precise."

Misty grinned broadly as she waved a pokeball at Frank in amusement. "It was both childish, and deeply satisfying," the trainer replied with a bit of a chuckle as Frank pushed himself away from the sign and stepped over Bow, moving closer to keep his voice low.

"So?" he inquired with a glance to the North, half trying to make out the distant image of Ces Batards De L'autre Cote De La Rue Restaurant Of International Cuisine, "You ladies ready?"

The two nodded. "As we'll ever be," assured Miranda, "Any idea, though, as to where we should stash our bikes?"

Frank nodded reassuringly. "Yeah, we'll just put them with the car," he told them with a wave of his hand before heading back along Route 4.

"They gave you a new car then?" inquired Misty with an amused glance at Bow, who had somehow caused Nezumi to gulp loudly and look strangely pale, "Your growlithe must be happy."

The pokeforce officer chuckled to himself for a moment. "Actually, miss," he admitted, glancing over his shoulder in time to see Miranda's sudden twitch to his response, "It's Jen's. But she won't mind. Assuming she never finds out that I borrowed it..."

As Nezumi leapt off the handlebars of Miranda's bike, Bow looked up at him and yipped a quick greeting. "Hey! Pyro-puppy!" the rattata exclaimed, bounding over to the canine with a renewed energy, "Waz'happen-iiing?"

Bow sat down on her haunches, giving the human's half a glance as they discussed things. "Feeling better, I see," she replied with smile, her tone a little concerned.

"Ah well," said Nezumi with a nonchalant shrug, "I finally had a chance to yank all those freakin' spooky-eevee hairs outta my fur, so I'm doin' good. And I'll be doing even better once we kick some dark chef butt and put Boss Lady there in a better mood."

Bow nodded. "Yeah," she whispered, leaning in conspiratorially as Frank stepped carefully over her, "He's been all weird the last while. Won't eat a thing! Which means of course, 'I' don't get to eat either! So you see the problem?"

"Yeah," laughed Nezumi, "You're spoilt rotten!"

"Spoilt?" replied Bow, tossing her long, lacy fur out of her eyes, "Me? I am NOT spoilt. I'm simply pampered. And let me tell you, little mouse, I'm worth it!"

Nezumi's jaw dropped as the growlithe invoked a simple technique (that humans claimed involved the release of pheromones and most referred to simply as 'Charm') that caused everything else around him to fuzz out slightly. The only image that the little rattata's vision could clearly focus on was Bow, her bright red and gleaming white fur seeming glow with an inner light that caused the already more than adorable growlithe seem even more irresistibly cute.

"Gah..." commented Nezumi loosing his thought for a moment, his brain going into a default setting as the humans started walking away, "Say, did you know that we rattatas is always 'in season'?"

Bow chuckled as she turned to follow Frank, to then ends of the earth if necessary. "That, my dear," she replied with a mischievous grin as she swished her tail to bat Nezumi playfully across the face, "Is quite true. Your kind produces thousands of offspring every year. However, that's only because we predators simply can't resist the taste of your sweet yummy flesh."

Nezumi went pale for a moment as Bow laughed. "Don't worry," she called back teasingly, "I'm NOT a meowth!"

"Thankfully," the rattata muttered, shaking his head clear and scurrying after the group, "But hey! Did you know that our offspring would be able to see in no less than two hundred and fifty six different shades of gray!"

"Give it up, Nezzy!" Bow laughed, suddenly wondering if they'd be able to raid the pantry once they'd arrested the criminal chef. 'Silly human,' the growlithe muttered with mock severity as she caught up with Frank, 'It's waaaay past dinner time...!'

Chef Troy took off his hat, letting his long, dirty blond hair fall about his shoulders as he wiped the sweat from his brow with a towel that one of his commise instantly handed to him. "What a day," he muttered cynically; accepting the water bottle another handed to him as his kitchen staff hurriedly cleaned up and made the place ready for the morning rush, "Oh well. At least our 'guests' have moved on."

One of the commises glanced up from where she was wiping a countertop down and shuddered visibly. "With all due respect, sir," the woman commented, keeping her gaze respectfully lowered, even as Troy crouched down to pick up Salmonella who seemed to be in an affectionate mood, "Ms. Forester scares me. Her lover is cute, though."

Troy smirked evilly. "Very true," he agreed, the hair on the back of his neck suddenly standing on end.

Instinctively, even before hearing Salmonella's warning hiss, the dark Chef turned on his heel in time to see the strange distortion effect as an oddly proportioned figure teleported directly in front of him.

'My, Mistress sends her regards, Chef Troy.' The words were planted directly into the man's mind by the female alakazam without a thought as to whether he consented to the mental intrusion.

"Talia," replied Troy through gritted teeth as he petted the umbreon in his arms compulsively, "so nice to see you again. Did you forget something, my dear? Or are you just here to reimburse me for the loss of my computer system. Not to mention ALL my secret recipes!"

The alakazam chuckled, both in reality and in Troy's mind. 'Fear not, Chef,' the psychic type assured him, thoughtfully combing the long white whiskers that sprouted from her short snout as she glanced at the gawking commises, 'Rockets take care of their own. Or so I'm told. And I'm sure that my Mistress can give "Uncle Auggie" a call on your behalf.'

Troy cringed at the lack of respect that the pokemon showed for Augustus Giovanni. The man had made the leadership of both Viridian City and Team Rocket his life's work. He'd even personally funded Chef Troy's latest endeavor, and no doubt many of Professor Katherine Forester's as well.

"So tell me, Tal," the Chef said conversationally, hoping to goad the overgrown psionic vole into causing trouble, "How's Tashiro doing? That little brain aneurysm all cleared up yet?"

Talia gritted her teeth, her voice in Troy's mind sounding darker as she spoke. 'The reptile shall survive,' she hissed in annoyance, 'But the damage to his brain was substantial. He shall have a few problems for a time, but once he advances to his adult phase, Tashiro shall be whole once more!'

"Give him my best regards, then," Troy replied with a shrug, turning to go back to his duties.

'Wait, human!' Talia commanded contemptuously, causing a peculiar reverberation in the air that caused several people to scream and at least one to drop the stack of plates he'd be carrying, 'I am NOT here simply to socialize.'

"Then make it quick," growled Troy, turning back around and intending to take no guff from a mere pokemon.

'My Mistress wishes to expand this current endeavor,' Talia answered, ignoring the list of alakazam recipes that suddenly filled Chef Troy's mind, 'She wishes you to get in touch with your many cousins and-'

But Talia's words were cut short as across the room the door to the loading dock slid up into the ceiling and three very annoyed looking people stepped boldly into the room.

"Chef Troy?" called the plain-clothed pokeforce officer in loud, authoritative tone as commises scrambled out of his way, "The name's Officer Frank, and I'm callin' you out!"

"Excuse me," muttered Troy with a smile, stepping around the alakazam and out into the far aisle, "Yes... Officer, is it? I can only presume that you have a reason for bursting into MY kitchen with your little 'posse'? Or is it that all the donut shops in Cerulean City have finally closed for the evening?"

"Actually," replied Frank with a sudden grin, finding the comment more amusing than insulting, "I'm here to arrest you."

"Oh really? On what charges?" inquired Troy in an innocently condescending tone, as Salmonella glared evilly at the growlithe at Frank's feet.

"Serving non-food pokemon in your restaurant!" accused Misty, stepping forward and clenching her fist threateningly.

The dark Chef gave her an amused, patronizing smile, "Then I can only presume that you have evidence to support this claim. Is that right, Officer?"

"Well, um, no... Nothing legal," Frank replied, shuffling his feet and looking embarrassed for a moment before meeting Troy's steely gaze, "But you know how Officer Jenny is... She'd ticket you for jaywalking in your living room! Of course, I MIGHT go easy on ya if you told me where Katherine Forester's gotten herself off to. I got a score to settle for an old friend you see. And so does his daughter as a matter of fact."

Miranda stepped to one side and grinned threateningly at the chef, who simply ignored her out of hand even as she reached for the wooden sword attached to her belt. "It's just too bad really," said Troy casually as he turned to walk away, "You just missed her by about an hour or so, and besides, revenge is a dish best served cold. Now then, if you're done, kindly leave. I'm a busy man, and I don't have time for such childish games."

Chef Troy stopped, a wide, amused grin crossing his face as all noise in the kitchen stopped dead as the sound of the safeties coming off two pistols that echoed throughout the room.

"Hold it right there, sir," said Frank grimly, "I don't wanna cause a scene here, but there's some black marks on your record that I think you should be answerin' for. And harboring a wanted criminal is the least of 'em."

"Now detective," chuckled Chef Troy, stealthy snatching a large gleaming and sliding it up his sleeve as he set Salmonella down on the counter before raising his hands and turning back around, "surly you know what the penalty for drawing a gun is? Let alone two?"

"Nine. Each," answered Frank indignantly as he leveled both revolvers on Chef Troy, "That's the number of reports I have to fill out. Fourteen each just for pointin' em at ya, and thirty one apiece if I have ta explain why yer arms are floppin on the ground as opposed to still bein' attached to your shoulders. So what'cha say I paint you a little picture. You see, the less you cooperate, the angrier you make me. And the angrier I get, the more reports I have to fill out. And you know what? Filling out reports makes me VERY angry. So you can see where this is going, can't'cha? A real vicious cycle, eh?"

"Then perhaps, detective," replied the dark Chef as he lowered his arms and in one smooth motion, retrieved the aerodynamic kitchen knife from up his sleeve before tossing it in Frank's direction, "I should teach you a lesson in anger management!"

Frank's eyes widened as he instinctively threw himself to the floor, his trigger fingers already moving back and forth, sending a hail of high velocity steel-jacketed lead into the air as the knife sailed in an unerring line towards the spot where he'd been standing.

"Look out!" shouted Miranda over the noise, immediately reaching out with her hand, catching the knife a mere inch from where it would have plowed into Misty's forehead.

"Whoa..." her lover replied, going pale and shaking even as a mildly hysterical grin crossed her face, "Thanks, Miri!"

"It gets worse!" Miranda warned, motioning to the sudden odd sound of bullets ricocheting off something distinctly unnatural.

They both glanced over and saw Talia, standing before Chef Troy with an amused grin as she casually held her four-fingered hand out before her, causing a barrier of curious red light that stopped the bullets in their tracks.

"Kazam," she chided, shaking her head in mild amusement, as the loud explosive sound of Frank's pistols gave way to an ominous clicking.

"Oh, oh..." muttered Frank, a second before a pair of spoons materialized in the alakazam's hands and the cop went sailing into the air in response to a raised hand.

"I- I'm alright!" assured Frank as he suddenly found himself being grabbed by the right wrist and right ankle by an unseen force before being spun in place in response to the swirling motion Talia made with one of her spoons, "I'm just a little airsick-!

For an uncertain moment, Miranda watched as her almost-uncle spun in the air before being released, landing on a long counter, only to slide the entire way down, knocking off a variety of metal bowls and stacked plates before crashing off the end with an equally loud clatter. This was followed by a panicked yelp from Bow who then proceeded to run in the direction her human had been thrown in.

"I- I'm fine!" called Frank, "It's just my spleen! Don't worry about me!"

"Alright, that's it!" growled Miranda though gritted teeth, tossing the knife aside as she produced a pokeball from seemingly nowhere, "Nezumi! Wraith! Umi! Triple attack 'Omega Beam'!"

In the time it took for the pokeball in her hand to activate, and for Umi to materialize from within the device, Wraith had stirred from his hiding place in Miranda's pokedex and chose a rather disturbing method of coming on the scene. He phased his way out of Miranda's backpack, through the courier, and seemingly out of her chest, causing her to shiver slightly as Nezumi also ran from hiding to stand beside the materializing dratini.

As one, the trio let out a confirming exclamation before executing the technique. It began with Wraith smiling balefully and radiating an eerie dark purple light as he floated back to hover just over the heads of his companions. Meanwhile, Nezumi glowed with a blinding white radiance, shifting into raticate mode as an odd crackling sound emanated from just in front of his incisors followed by a shifting blue/white light that seemed to draw in all warmth in the area. For her part, Umi reared up like a snake preparing to bite, snarling at the alakazam menacingly as orange flames licked across her sharp pointy bared teeth.

Then, as one, the three pokemon released their fury. Nezumi puffed out his cheeks and exhaled fiercely, his claws all but digging into the linoleum tiled floor as the beam of pure, focused cold shot forth as Wraith's three fingered hands dropped down, hovering on either side of the beam as dark purple light flowed from his open palms, merging with the ice beam near its point of origin.  
And finally, Umi lunged forward, spitting out a small ball of burning flame that somehow became trapped in the strange energy beam's gravity, before spinning and spiraling down its length.

Talia's now dark, featureless eyes widened in panic as the ice-  
beam hit her psychic barrier like an elemental battering ram. The shimmering red haze shuddered, as icy tendrils of frost crept across its surface, radiating out from the point of impact. A heartbeat later, and Wraith's dark-chi hit, causing the barrier to buckle, crack and finally shatter.

With a frightened yelp, the alakazam instinctively raised her arms and turned away, just as Umi's small ball of flame met the dual attack at its pinnacle and the three crashed into Talia, causing a small explosive reaction and a wave of seemingly reverse light to fill the room as she flew backwards end over end into a group of scrambling commises. 

"Give it up, Troy!" exclaimed Frank, looking extremely disheveled as he clambered back up from under a pile of pots and pans, "Your out classed, out numbered, and out gunned!"

The dark chef glared at the cop with a sudden fury. "In MY kitchen!" he shouted angrily as he reached under the counter and grabbed something that made an awful clicking noise, "You WILL refer to ME as CHEF!"

Frank's eyes widened, and he immediately dropped down behind the metal counter once more as Chef Troy pulled a tommy-gun out and began firing madly in the officer's direction.

"What next!" exclaimed Misty, noticing that the commise who hadn't immediately fled the scene were now taking up large knives and frying pans before rushing to their leader's aid.

"As I said, it only gets worse!" answered Miranda, stepping around Misty as she drew her bokken in time to parry the cleaver of a stealthy commise who thought he could backstab her lover.

"Wow," commented Misty, glancing over her shoulder in time to see Miranda's knee connect with the commise's groin and the man go down groaning, "I'm really going to owe you, aren't I?"

"Then in return we could use some more firepower!"

"Well then, Miri, dear," Misty replied with a wide grin as she pulled out two minimized poke balls and prepared to lob them with all her might, "I hope you'll settle for a little water power! Shadow! Umberlee! Save Uncle Frank!"

Chef Troy ducked momentarily as several rounds from Frank's revolver whizzed past him and impacted with the far wall before leaping up once again and spraying the area, inadvertently wounding several of his own minions. In his excitement, however, he failed to notice as a pokeball enlarged itself from storage mode in time to bounce off his head.

"Ow-! Shizen-!" he exclaimed, staggering backwards as his tommy-  
gun continued to fire blindly before a very large, very determined ten-pointed starfish landed on him, pinning the dark Chef to the floor.

"Sal-! Salmonella!" the man shouted as his tommy-gun clattered to the floor and he struggled with the enormous starmie, "Get this thing off of me!"

"Guys!" ordered Miranda as she made a flinging motion with her bokken to dislodge the meat cleaver, "Split up and incapacitate anyone who's not running away! We're NOT here to cause permanent harm!"

"Even if they ARE," muttered Misty a touch bitterly as she watched the cleaver spin over once before sailing in an unerring line across the kitchen before stabbing into a cupboard door. "Wow!" she laughed, "Aerodynamic!"

"Whatever works!" commented Frank as he and Bow leapt out of hiding and dove over the counter to help Umberlee as Troy finally tossed her off on his own.

"Salmonella!" the chef called out, not noticing as behind him, Shadow began to swivel in the air, the ends of his five arms sending out a fine mist, "Where are you?"

"Probably hiding!" chuckled Frank, aiming both pistols at Troy and motioning for the man to rise, failing to clue into the staryu's intent, "Bow, give chase. That little pokemon's probably more trouble than her master."

"You have no idea," Troy replied with a toothy grin as Bow yipped and ran off as behind the dark Chef, Shadow's spinning turned him into a blur before each of his five arms let loose with simultaneous blasts of water that spun into a spiraling jet of water before crashing into the dark chef's back.

With a surprised curse, Chef Troy ploughed into Frank, causing the officer to drop his revolvers as the two men collapsed in heap and Umberlee reached out with her mind.

'Sleeeeeep!' came the distant sound of the starmie's voice in both men's minds.

"Overzealous, glory-hogging, overgrown starfish!" grunted Frank, biting his tongue as hard as he could to stay awake, but finding to his disappointment that Chef Troy had gone unconscious.

From not far away, the act of sending Chef Troy into a deep slumber caused Salmonella to let out a loud angry cry of anguish. This was followed by the remaining commises to let loose a series of curses as they realized that their dark leader had fallen.

"I think we made them mad!" commented Misty over the sound of shouting voices and running feet as her and Miranda pivoted in place, their backs pressed against each other.

"What makes you say that?" Miranda chuckled through gritted teeth, finding herself enjoying the adrenaline surge as swung her bokken in several quick, hard strokes, knocking several kitchen knives out of the air and causing the wooden blade to sustain several deep gashes.

Misty laughed as she quickly stooped to grab a fallen cast-iron frying pan and using it to parry an angry commise's fist before panting her foot firmly against his stomach and pushing him away.

"Gee!" she commented, glancing over her shoulder as the woman Troy had been speaking to earlier chopped downward with the knife she held in both hands, "What's that thing made of!"

Miranda grunted as she caught the blow, and grinned darkly at her opponent as the metal blade hit something half way through her bokken with a loud -clank!-. "My mother's invention, actually," she explained in a tone both casual and hurried, "Courier swords are reinforced with mithril. Don't tell Uncle Frank!"

The courier took advantage of her opponent's surprise and grabbed a plastic squeeze bottle off a nearby counter before squirting the red liquid it contained in her face. The woman instantly let do of the knife, and fled the kitchen screaming as she held her face in both hands.

"Ooops!" commented Miranda, glancing at the label as she shook the kitchen knife free of her weapon, "'Karl's Insanity Hot-Sauce. Caution: Avoid contact with exposed skin'. Sorry, ma'am!"

Misty could help laughing, even as she fought for her life against a sudden barrage of thrown food items tossed out by a commise standing near one of the now open cold storage room doors as desperately throwing food out of the freezer in her direction.

With gritted teeth and a grin both panicked and amused, she swung the frying pan about defensively, parrying a small swarm of frozen brussel-sprouts before the man heaved out a huge block of mint-  
chocolate chip ice-cream with both hands.

"Miranda!" she exclaimed, uncertain of what to do as the frozen block of her favorite dessert suddenly came sailing towards her head at a dangerous speed.

Without looking back, Miranda tossed her bokken into the air, before reaching back linking both arms through Misty's before catching the bokken rather awkwardly in both hands and tossing herself and Misty bodily into on of the aisles.

There was a loud -thump!- as the huge block of ice-cream hit the corner of a metal counter and broke in half, each chunk flying in a different direction as the two slid across the linoleum.

"You okay, love?" inquired Miranda as she wasted no time in getting to her feet.

"I've had worse," assured Misty, standing with her back to Miranda once more, and giving a sudden start as half a block of ice-cream fell into her hands as an other commise came running down the aisle towards her.

"For Chef Troy!" the commise exclaimed, fanatically swinging his kitchen knife over his head madly as he ran.

"Don't you know?" laughed Misty, holding up the block of ice-cream as the blade came down and sank a mere inch into the frozen surface, "Every city in history that was named Troy fell!"

"Hey," laughed Miranda as Misty raised the block and clobbered her opponent into unconsciousness with it, "I guess it is true. A Ginsu CAN'T cut through frozen ice-cream."

"And I finally got at that ice-cream we transporting," laughed Misty mischievously as they both turned to face one another and she took a large bite of it. "Wan' 'ome?" she inquired with a mouthful of ice-cream and a silly grin before tossing the block away and catching another commise in the stomach with it.

"Then we shall see which is sweeter," commented Miranda, her left arm going about her beloved's waist finding herself unable to keep a straight face, "Mint chocolate chip, or your kisses!"

Miranda found herself laughing as Misty's now gooey fingers took twin handfuls of her hair, a heartbeat before their lips touched...

Elsewhere in the kitchen, Wraith hovered amongst the ensuing chaos, chuckling to himself as the waves of varying emotions filled the ethereal plane, slowly satiating his hunger. As he lazily floated through the melee, he laughed as thrown kitchen knives passed harmlessly through him and the ghost returned the attacks with half-hearted blasts of 'nightshade', which he fired off with a casual flick of a single finger.

'Oh! So sorry!' he sent to one unfortunate commise as the man fell to the ground convulsing as the dark light enveloped him, causing the unfortunately fellow to take on a sudden gaunt cast, 'I keep forgetting, you human's are "weak" against ghost attacks!'

"And ghosts are weak against darkness!" hissed a sinister voice, before a baseball sized orb of un-light ploughed into, and straight through the haunter, taking a good-sized portion of his ephemera with it.

Wraith let out a shriek of panic as he swiveled around and spotted Salmonella standing atop an unconscious commise who'd slumped over a workstation. "You!" he whispered, barely able to speak after the power of the dark-eevee's shadow bolt.

Salmonella smiled malevolently, her tiny, razor-like teeth gleaming as the circle of amber coloured fur upon her forehead glowed brightly. "Yes," she replied in a sinisterly amused tone, "I thought I smelt the delightful tang of ectoplasm in the air. But tell me, spirit-" as the umbreon spoke, crackling black lightning erupted within the confines of the circle as she prepared a second helping of 'shadow-bolt' "-where's that delicious little rattata friend of yours?"

"Right here, soul-sucker!" a voice called out, causing Salmonella to glance across the rift between countertops to see Nezumi, once more in rattata mode, standing dramatically on his haunches, glowing with a silvery light.

"Ah, how quaint," the umbreon remarked mockingly, a ball of shimmering darkness melding out from within the glowing circle, "You run to your friend's rescue so easily. Ah, how predictable and easily manipulated the 'good' ones are! They all die so easily!"

Nezumi let out a laughing exclamation of surprise as he sidestepped the shadow-bolt, which landed in the sink full of dirty dishes behind him and exploded, sending shards of glass out towards the dark-eevee.

"Curses!" she hissed, her sickly green barrier reinitializing in time to halt the shards in their tracks.

"Say, uh, shadow-babe," chuckled Nezumi, watching as Salmonella lowered her barrier and the shards of glass fell to the floor, "You ah, you look like ya got a little rattata in you. Is that true?"

"WHAT!" hissed Salmonella, her eyes glowing red with anger as Nezumi tried to keep from shivering in her presence, "I'll have you know, vermin, that I was a pure strain eevee before I chose to embrace the darkness of my soul!"

Nezumi suppressed the urge to roll his eyes; instead he concentrated on what he believed to be his greatest asset. His sarcasm. "Well then," he replied as adrenaline filled his system, "Would ya like some?"

"WHA-!" Salmonella exclaimed, deeply offended by the crude remark and unable to react as Nezumi lunged forward, leaping over the chasm that separated them so quickly, that all the pokemon saw was a purple blur. A tenth of a second later, the blur ploughed into the umbreon, sending her sailing over the opposite edge of the counter.

"Curse you!" she exclaimed just before landing head first in a garbage can as several commises ran past her, fleeing for their lives as loud angry roar filled the air, causing visible waves of sound to rattle the wastebasket until it fell over and the struggling umbreon came spilling out with the rest of the garbage.

"What was that?" she exclaimed angrily, giving her head a shake to dislodge the scraps of decomposing meat and rotting vegetables from her fur.

"The righteous wrath of the just, that shall punish the wicked!" answered Bow with a snarling growl as she stood at the far end of the aisle, a large piece of white cloth still hanging from her jaws where she'd given a commise something to remember her by.

"You've GOT to be kidding me," relied Salmonella, giving the growlithe her best "get real" look.

"Actually," assured Umi from the opposite end of the aisle in a calm, amused tone, "She's quite serious. Your master tried to hurt Frank. Not the most intelligent of moves."

Salmonella glanced fearfully in the young dragon's direction and grimaced. "Fine then," she said with dark determination as a strange greenish frothing substance began to form with her mouth, "Then I'll just have to add dratini to tonight's menu, seeing as we already have growlithe!" 

"Bring it on!" Umi hissed angrily, anticipating the sudden blast of bale-fire, and responding with a jet of high-pressure water as Bow felt no compunction against unleashing a jet of flame from behind...

Misty turned in the direction of Salmonella's sudden frightened scream as Miranda kneecapped the last of the commises with her bokken and the room was lit by a burst of green/red light before a cloud of steam rose from one of the aisles.

"Looks like the girls work well together," she commented, wiping mint chocolate-chip ice-cream off her mouth as Frank got to his feet a short distance away, soaked through to the skin by Shadow and Umberlee's enthusiastic attempt to help apprehend Chef Troy, panting as he hefted the handcuffed, and unconscious chef up onto the counter.

"Eh, Bow's a cop too," Frank replied as the two star-shaped pokemon hovered eerily behind him, watching with interest, "she understands the concept of back up."

"Unlike SOME officers, I hear," commented the amused voice of Irene as she entered the kitchen through the loading dock.

"Irene!" Misty and Miranda exclaimed in delighted surprise as Miranda bopped the commise on the forehead with the hilt of her sword, knocking the man unconscious.

The woman smiled at them maternally as she stepped forward, hardly seeming to notice as she hopped over an unconscious body. "Sorry I missed all the fun, girls," she replied in a motherly tone, holding up the carefully wrapped package she carried, "But I did bring cookies if anyone's interested."

"Thanks, mom!" Miranda laughed as Misty accepted the box and wasted little time opening it.

"And as for, you!" the woman scolded, walking towards Frank, "What trouble have you gotten these two into now?"

"Uh, I- Ah..." Frank stammered as Bow ran out of nowhere, her lacily furred tail wagging frantically as she lunged at Irene, barking happily, "We were just um... Doing a health inspection?"

Irene laughed as she knelt down to pet Bow and accept her canine greeting. "Well," the woman replied, glancing at the unconscious form of Chef Troy with some satisfaction, "So long as you can find some kind of evidence to support your claim, I suppose you could always say you had probable cause."

Irene gave Bow a final pat on the head and stood up, immediately marching towards one of the sealed cool-rooms. "So, how did you know we were here?" Miranda inquired politely, a cold chill that had nothing to do with temperature running through her as Irene yanked open the metal door.

"Hey," the woman replied with a knowing smile, "I'm a mom! Do you really have to ask?"

"Well, um... Yeah," offered Misty a little sheepishly, finally having a chance to wipe her hands clean on a towel.

Irene paused, an amused smile crossing her lips. "Actually, it was Frank," she explained, "He called me and told me to meet you all here. Sorry I was late."

The seamstress then proceeded to pull the door open all the way and gave the room a thoughtful look. "Ah yes," the seamstress pondered thoughtfully, "This IS bad."

Miranda's arm went about Misty's shoulders as she turned away. "You found the one with the... The pokemon we had in it?"

Irene shook her head in dismay. "No," she sighed heavily, stepping into the room and returning with a tray full of slightly green-  
tinged eggs, "These haven't been stored at a proper temperature and are likely to go bad. Anyone for an omelet?"

"The cookies are more than enough," Miranda laughed, feeling a little relieved as she lead Misty over to where Frank was picking up one of the large, strangely shaped eggs.

"So, uh, what are these anyway?" he asked, shuffling uncomfortably in his damp clothes.

"Oh," said Irene thoughtfully, giving the clutch a closer examination, "Oh dear. These are bulbasaur eggs. If they aren't prepared properly they're quite toxic!"

"Ah!" exclaimed Frank, tossing the egg to Miranda in mock fear.

The courier caught it carefully in the palm of her free hand, laughing at her almost-uncle's antics and not noticing as the large, elliptical orb quivered in her hand.

"Um, Miranda..." warned Misty, suddenly frantically tugging at the courier's sleeve, "I think this one's alive."

"Wha-!" she exclaimed as the group glanced down at the now shaking egg and Miranda moved quickly to hold it in both hands as it threatened to drop onto the floor.

"They're replies," whispered Irene as the egg cracked, "It probably reacted to your body-heat, deary."

Miranda could only nod slowly as a small portion of the shell shattered, and a strange, questioning sound was emitted from within the green-tinged egg. "This reminds me if Umi..." the courier whispered so quietly, that had the group not become perfectly still, awed by the small miracle that Miranda held in her hands they wouldn't have heard the gentle tone to her voice.

The baby bulbasaur within the egg made a final frustrated cry before pushing all four of its legs outwards, bursting its way out whether the egg wanted it to or not. A moment later, the small, bluish reptile lay exhaustedly panting, cradled in Miranda's hands.

"It's so cute," commented Misty, reaching out to pet the tiny thing's head with her finger, making note of the strange dark brown seed that seemed stuck to the bulbasaur's back.

"Adorable," agreed Irene, glancing up at Miranda with a maternal smile, "The question is, though, will you keep it? If you want, I'll raise it. My children have all left home and now I have so much time on my hands... Oh, what is a mother to do?"

Miranda shrugged, feeling a sudden surge of guilt as she spotted her three pokemon staring up at her expectantly. "I think," the courier said carefully, "that I should ask them before taking on another little responsibility. It's only fair that they decide..."

As Umi and Nezumi looked on, and Wraith glanced hungrily at the sleeping Chef Troy, noting that the man was having a particularly tasty nightmare, Miranda crouched down and held the exhausted little bulbasaur out towards them.

"Hm, tough call," mutter Nezumi thoughtfully, still compulsively scratching himself where he'd actually had to touch the umbreon, "What'cha think, Fang-Face?"

"Oh?" the haunter inquired innocently, hoping that no one noticed his suddenly missing hand, "About what?"

"Well," the rattata explained, giving the little reptile/plant hybrid a curious sniff and immediately determining that it was female, "If we let Sprouts here join us, then Draco-Babe won't be the baby in the party anymore, now will she?"

"I!" exclaimed Umi indignantly, immediately withdrawing her curious gaze from the bulbasaur and fixing Nezumi with an angry look, "Am NOT a baby! I'll have you know that I've survived fourteen horrible Winters, and I'm just THIS close to evolving!"

Wraith and Nezumi laughed heartily. "Oh yeah right!" commented Nezumi as the bulbasaur opened one small eye and seemed to smile at him, "You evolve! Yeah, okay, let's see it, Draco-babe! Evolve! I dares ya!"

Umi glowered at the rodent, her eyes shifting colour to a deep orange of determination. "Alright then, smart-guy!" she growled through gritted teeth, "I'll show you! You just watch!"

All eyes fell upon the little dragon-serpent at that moment. The tension in the air was palatable as Umi squeezed her luminescent eyes shut and held her breath as she concentrated with all her might.

"Mmmmrrrggg!" came her muffled reply, as her whole body began to shake violently with the exertion, "Errrrg!"

Nezumi quickly covered his mouth with both front paws as the dratini paused, took several deep breaths and tried again, focusing all her will as her skin began to turn an several unpleasant colours.

"I- I can do this-!" she panted at last as Nezumi fell over on his back laughing as Umi finally gave up and Wraith popped something into his mouth before looking around innocently, "I... I just need to take a break."

"Oh, give it up, babe!" Nezumi laughed, flipping back over before walking up to the dragon and giving her a reassuring pat on the head as she collapsed at his feet, "You can't win 'em all. Maybe next year."

"Think so?" Umi inquired hopefully, her eyes shifting to light blue as she smiled meekly up at the rattata.

"Definitely," assured Nezumi, taking a moment to glance at Wraith, "That right, Fang-Face?"

Wraith, who'd been surreptitiously chewing whatever was in his mouth, gave the rattata a startled look and quickly gave the thumbs up sign as he smiled nervously at Miranda.

"Okay then, now that that's settled," chuckled Nezumi as he glanced back at the bulbasaur who seemed to be drooling a bit, "What about Sprouts, here?"

Umi gave the small creature, which barely took up half the space of one of Miranda's hands, let alone two, a discerning look. "She's like me," the dragon commented with a glance up at Miranda, "She's an orphan. At least I got to know my parents. She never will, though. So she's going to need a friend."

"Great!" grinned Nezumi mischievously as he rubbed his forepaws together, "Then she'll need someone to show her that life isn't as serious and boring as SOME poke's seem to think it should be..."

The rattata chuckled at Umi's glare as he glanced up at Wraith. "And you're vote, oh 'le connaisseur de cauchemars'?"

Wraith swooped down almost threateningly, like a dark shadow bent on mischief and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. As the haunter examined the curious little creature, one of his eyes grew as the other shrank until the single eye took up most of his face. "Hmm," he pondered as the bulbasaur looked at him with an amused, toothy grin, "Very interesting..."

"So then," interrupted Umi impatiently, the end of her tail swishing back and forth as he eyes shifted to golden, "Your decision, oh ethereal one?"

Wraith's single huge eye looked up at the dratini, and immediately dislodged from his head, floating upwards a few inches before exploding with a loud -pop!- leaving the haunter with his two normal sized eyes once again. "Yeah sure," he commented with a noncommittal shrug, "Can't hurt."

Umi glanced at Bow, who'd been silent throughout most of the proceedings and smiled. "Any comments, friend?" she asked as the growlithe stepped forward to sniff at the peculiar pokemon.

"She smells like a salad," Bow commented, making the others, including Frank, laugh...

Umi glanced up at Miranda and nodded as Nezumi grinned toothily and chuckled. "Alright then, that's that," the courier commented, standing back up and holding the bulbasaur closer to her heart, "Look's like I'm keepin' her. I'll just have to think of a decent name..."

"Rattata," commented Nezumi with a smirk, that immediately caused Wraith to laugh so hard his eyes fell out, Umi to swat him hard across the face, and Miranda to turn five shades of red.

"I will NOT name her THAT!" Miranda exclaimed exasperatedly as she stared down at Nezumi in disbelief.

The rattata recovered from Umi's slap a moment later, still chuckling and finally and motioned towards Bow. "You have an idea?" the blushing courier inquired of the growlithe, a certain desperation to her tone.

Bow nodded and barked out a quick reply, causing all eyes to turn towards Frank.

"Ivy," he said with a shrug, "Bow thinks it's a good name for it."

"Her," corrected Miranda with half a glare, "But yeah, that'll do. Thanks, Bow."

The growlithe wagged her tail happily at Miranda before going to sit possessively upon Frank's feet as Irene gave a happy sigh. "Well, now that that's settled," Irene commented in a slightly more serious tone as she handed Frank the tray of eggs, "I'll just take a quick peek in those other storerooms. Oh, and check to make sure none of those other eggs are viable, okay?"

"Yes 'Mom'," chuckled Frank, crouching down to show the assembled pokemon the tray, "Anything look lively guys?"

The four moved closer and sniffed at the clutch as Irene began systematically looking into each of the storerooms and Misty turned away, thankful for Miranda's arms around her.

"Nothing," called Frank as Irene came out of one room shaking her head.

"Poor chansey..." the woman muttered before looking up and smiling grimly. "Okay, dear, just set it down somewhere and find a phone. I think you'll find what you're looking for in these two rooms."

Irene indicated them with her hand before walking back to Miranda. "She going to be alright?" the seamstress inquired with concern as Misty gave a bit of a shudder and finally stood up straight.

"I'll be fine," she assured Irene with a determined look before glaring at the still unconscious form of Chef Troy, her two pokemon still hovering near his body, waiting for the man to wake up again so they could take him down again, "I'm just glad it wasn't one of them. Eating a psyduck was bad enough!"

Irene nodded grimly. "Well, you two had best get your pokemon together and get going," she told them both, "Frank's calling in for backup... Finally. So I think you've done all you can, and I don't want you two getting into trouble."

"What about you?" asked Miranda with concern.

"Oh, I'm staying," chuckled Irene mischievously, "Someone has to take the blame for this, and I don't want Frank loosing his job. I'll just say that I tricked him into coming here because I 'suspected' something funny was going on, and oh look! Something was!"

Misty and Miranda laughed as Ivy made a sudden unhappy sound. Miranda glanced down, half forgetting that she still held the small creature in her hand. "I think she's hungry," the courier commented, a sudden helpless look crossing her face.

"Oh, just feed her some of this for now," offered Irene, suddenly taking a small Ziploc bag from her coat pocket and handing it to Misty.

"You carry pokemon food in your pocket?" she inquired, bewilderedly accepting the small package along with the cookies.

"Hey," Irene laughed, "I'm a mom. I have to be ready for ANY situation!"

"I'd kinda forgotten that particular phenomenon," Misty commented quietly.

"That's why I'm here, deary," assured Irene as Miranda gave the pokemon food a bit of a concern look, "Something wrong?"

Miranda shook her head. "Sorry," she explained, "I just don't usually trust the fake stuff after that tainted food scare we had a few years ago. I prefer to feed my pokemon the things they'd eat in the wild. Or as close as possible to it anyway."

"But you spoil them so often with human food that I don't think it matters," Misty teased; her eyes full of joy as Ivy greedily accepted the small soft lumps of food she offered.

"Point taken," chuckled Miranda, unable and unwilling to argue the point.

"Okay, they're on their way," called Frank as he re-entered the room, "In about five minutes this place should be crawling with Pokeforce personnel."

"We'd better go," said Miranda, a sudden nervousness creeping down her spine.

"Thanks for everything!" Misty called over to Frank with a wave before thanking Irene as well.

"Just go!" the older woman instructed, shooing them towards the loading dock door door even as Misty and Miranda hastily recalled their pokemon, all except for Nezumi, who insisted on riding with Ivy in Miranda's coat pocket, "You two can't afford to get in trouble! Now go home! I'll drop by the gym later with a few things for Ivy, now get!"

The two laughed as they were ushered out the loading dock door, and soon found themselves running full tilt across the parking lot as the sound of police sirens filled the air.

"So, Miri!" laughed Misty as they hopped over a small fence and cut through someone's back yard, "What do you wanna do tomorrow night?"

'Same thing we do every night!' laughed Nezumi in pokespeak as Ivy stuck her head out beside him and gave a sudden gasp of wonder, 'Try and take over the world...!'

Chapter XX

The day was sunny and cloudless as Summer once more fought back against the onset of Autumn, but the cool breezes off the lake as well as the shade from the ancient maple trees that filled the park kept Misty and Miranda from baking in the sun as they enjoyed their lunch on the last day of the Cerulean City End Of Summer Festival.

"There he is," Miranda commented chewing her french-fry quickly before waving her arm in a wide arc as Officer Frank came up dirt path, dodging small children on his way to meet them.

Misty glanced over her shoulder and smiled as Nezumi glanced up from the small bowl which contained the remainder of Irene's pokechow that he was sharing with Ivy and squeaked a loud greeting to the growlithe that followed on Frank's heels.

At the sound of her name, Bow let out a loud bark and Nezumi grinned broadly, once again causing Miranda to sigh warily, shaking her head at the two pokemon who seemed to enjoy teasing each other far too much.

"Hey, guys!" called Frank as walked over to the picnic table and gave the strange slumbering creature on the bench beside Misty a curious look, "Um, this yours?"

Misty glanced down at the dozing Kappa; the psyduck had had a hard morning. Umi had been trying to teach him to swim again, and he'd almost managed to master floating.

"I'm afraid so," his trainer muttered with a half a smile, scratching the defective water creature on the tummy as Frank rounded the table and sat beside his almost-niece, "He's not much to look at, but he kinda grows on ya after a while."

'Yeah, like a fungus!' Nezumi to surreptitiously to Ivy in pokespeak, causing Miranda bounce a fry off his head.

"So, I take it you two'll be heading out soon," commented Frank, grinning mischievously as he grabbed Miranda's drink and took a sip without asking.

"Not until you do," he niece replied with a knowing smile and a hint of severity.

"What?" inquired Frank helplessly, "You don't trust me?"

"Have you even CALLED Aunt Laurna yet?"

The Pokeforce Officer nodded. "Yeah," he admitted in a strangely shy tone, glancing down and pretending to be fascinated as Bow begged desperately to be helped up into his lap, "That's how I know you two are headed for Saffron."

"After a not so short trip to Neon Town, though," Miranda agreed with a sigh, stretching out her legs and half wondering how long the snow would hold off that Winter, "I got stuck doing some mail delivery not too long ago, so now I've been asked to deliver a bundle up that way. But, we'll be in Lavender in time for Halloween. I expect to see you there, you know."

Frank avoided his niece's all too knowing look by turning to Misty. "Well, the reason I mentioned that," he segued with a complete disregard for tact, causing Miranda to give him a bit of a dirty look, "Is that I hear that Saffron's Gym Leader's got a haunter. So maybe she could teach Miranda a thing or two about them, make Wraith a little more manageable."

"I seem to vaguely recall that..." said Misty thoughtfully as Miranda slid her index finger under her uncle's unshaven chin and turned his head towards her.

"If," she said imperiously, "I want advice on haunters I'll just ask the world's premier authority on spectral-parazoology. Say like... Oh, I don't know... Maybe... AUNT LAURNA!"

"Ah, Miri," mused Frank, finally helping Bow up onto his lap, "Sometimes you remind me so much of your mother."

Miranda gave him a sour look and tried not to laugh as Misty and Nezumi chuckled at her. "Don't try and change the subject, you!"

"Yes, Viv'," he said, his toothy grin still present, his gray eyes still laughing merrily.

"Oh you!" Miranda exclaimed in an exasperated tone, finally giving up and dropping the subject, "Alright fine. So, how did Chef Troy's trial go?"

Frank coughed into his hand, catching Misty's slight grimace out of the corner of his eye. "Oh, it went well," he said with a nonchalant shrug, "Joy broke down into tears when she found out she ate curried chansey, but that didn't exactly hurt our case. Jen's a bit ticked, but Irene made her a few new outfits and sent over a huge box of baked stuff, so it's all good."

"Never underestimate the power of Mom," Miranda commented ruefully.

"I guess we'll be seeing yours in a month or so then?" Misty commented with a slight edge to her tone, causing Miranda's heart to feel heavy in her chest.

"Yeah," she agreed without much enthusiasm, "And you'll get to meet Bob face to face, which means a decent meal for once."

"Hey, Vivian can cook," defended Frank before hastily adding, "I think..."

"Better than me," Miranda sighed, suddenly thinking about the fortnight's worth of instant ramen in her backpack.

"Don't worry," assured Misty, her smile a bit sad as she thought of her own parents, "I'm sure that between us we can survive 'till then. I did spend a few years traveling with an uncertified chef you know."

Miranda smiled. "I know we won't starve," she said, her tone becoming amused as she glanced down at Nezumi, "If we did we'd never hear the end of it!"

"Uuuuummmmiiii!" replied the rattata, suddenly standing on his haunches and doing his best gastly impression as though to threaten to haunt his trainer from beyond the grave if he starved to death.

"Point taken," Misty commented, handing Nezumi one of the french-  
fries she really didn't feel like eating.

"Okay then," replied Frank, checking his watch, "I'm back on duty in five minutes, and I still have to make transfer arrangements, so I'd better go."

"So you DID call, Aunt Laurna then?" inferred Miranda as the officer set Bow on the ground before getting up himself.

"Bye, Miri! See you later!" he laughed, refusing to answer the question as he suddenly made a break for it, running across the near by clearing where several people were playing soccer, followed by a suddenly very confused Bow.

"You'd better be there!" his niece called after him, both anger and amusement in her tone as Misty chuckled.

"He's worse than Nezumi," commented Misty as Miranda gave up, shaking her head in dismay.

"Naw, Nezumi's worse," the courier replied resting her chin in her hand as she slowly swung at fry in front of Nezumi's snout to get his attention, "and as you said. Good thing he's so darn cute, or I'd kick his butt!"

The rattata leapt up and snatched the french-fry in both fore paws. 'I like him!' he commented in pokespeak with a wide grin as he bit the fry in half.

"You would!" Miranda chuckled defeatedly before reaching her hand across the table to take Misty's. "You okay?" she asked kindly.

"Fine," Misty said with a nod that said it was only half true, "But, would you mind if we stopped by my parent's grave before we left."

"Not at all," Miranda replied, giving her beloved's hand a reassuring squeeze.

Misty looked up, her sea green eyes full of love and sadness. "Miri," she said quietly with a smile that made her lover's heart melt, "I love you..."

THE END

Copyright Nikolai Mirovich 9, 2001 


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